As the 2020 college football season hangs in the balance, coaches and players are using social media to voice their support for allowing the season to commence, using hashtags like #WeWantToPlay and #FIGHT.
“With the Big Ten and Pac-12 expected to cancel or postpone their seasons on Tuesday, the rumors have earned a response from some of the biggest names in the sport who took to Twitter to share their stance on the coming season,” NBC Washington reported Monday.
“I love our players & believe it is my responsibility to help them chase their dreams, both collectively & individually,” said Penn State University head football coach James Franklin. “I am willing to fight WITH them & for our program! #WeAre.”
I love our players & believe it is my responsibility to help them chase their dreams, both collectively & individually. I am willing to fight WITH them & for our program!#WeAre
— James Franklin (@coachjfranklin) August 10, 2020
Ryan Day, head football coach at Ohio State University, posted, “Swinging as hard as we possibly can right now for these players!! This isn’t over! #FIGHT.”
Swinging as hard as we possibly can right now for these players!! This isn’t over! #FIGHT
— Ryan Day (@ryandaytime) August 10, 2020
Nebraska head football coach Scott Frost said Monday, “We wanna play a Big Ten schedule. I hope that’s what happens. Our university is committed to playing no matter what, no matter what that looks like and how that looks. We want to play no matter who it is or where it is.”
“So, we’ll see how those chips fall, we certainly hope it’s in the Big Ten. If it isn’t, we’re certainly prepared for other options,” the coach said, opening the door to leaving the Big Ten.
“I ask the players to fight for us all the time on the football field,” Frost said, as noted by Outkick. “Sometimes the head coach’s responsibility is to fight for what they want too. Our football players want to play. The coaches want to coach. We want to play football this year at the University of Nebraska.”
Also on Monday, Donde Plowman, chancellor of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, said student-athletes overwhelmingly want the football season to move forward.
“This afternoon, I met with our football team and staff to have an open conversation about playing football this fall. At the end of our discussion, I asked if they wanted to play football and the answer was a resounding YES,” she wrote via Twitter.
“This group of student-athletes have worked hard to prepare for the season amidst detailed and strict healthy and safety protocols,” Plowman added. “I can’t wait to see them on the field in Neyland Stadium.”
This group of student-athletes have worked hard to prepare for the season amidst detailed and strict healthy and safety protocols. I can’t wait to see them on the field in Neyland Stadium. pic.twitter.com/1vX7FV9IMO
— Donde Plowman (@DondePlowman) August 10, 2020
“There’s been too much work put in!!” said Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields, adding the hashtag #WeWantToPlay.
There’s been too much work put in!! #WeWantToPlay
— Justin Fields (@justnfields) August 10, 2020
Trevor Lawrence of the Clemson Tigers posted the same hashtag, captioning a graphic with a list of six proposals for the season to go forward safely, via NBC Washington:
- “We all want to play football this season.”
- “Establish universal mandated health and safety procedures and protocols to protect college-athletes against COVID-19 among all conferences throughout the NCAA”
- “Give players the opportunity to opt out and respect their decision”
- “Guarantee eligibility whether a player chooses to play the season or not”
- “Use our voices to establish open communication and trust between players and officials; ultimately create a college football players association”
- “Representative of the players of All Power 5 Conferences”
#WeWantToPlay pic.twitter.com/jvQhE7noGB
— Trevor Lawrence (@Trevorlawrencee) August 10, 2020