COLUMBUS – Justin Fields does not need to play another down at Ohio State.
He has already proven that he is among the best quarterbacks in college football. And he has already shown NFL scouts that he can make the throws needed to be a starter at the next level. He even showed an introductory ability when entering a locker room.
That might make it even more powerful to see Fields stomp for college football alongside Trevor Lawrence and the biggest stars in college games this season.
Fields do not have to play. He wants to.
“Too much work has been put in !! #WeWantToPlay, ”Fields said on Twitter Sunday night.
That message has been reflected across the entire football landscape since rumors leaked from the Big Ten presidents and Power Five board meetings over the weekend. The players want to play. The packages hidden behind closed doors are not convinced they can pull off a season amid the worst global health crisis in a century.
The Ohio State Buckeyes are back on the practice field. (Courtesy / Ohio State Dept. Athletics)
The simple message posted by Fields on Twitter has been shared by other Buckeyes, coaches and even parents. There’s a clear consensus across the board – everyone in Ohio State is ready to start a season, even amid worries about the virus. And they are passive about it.
“I feel pretty strong about this, and if the question didn’t come up, I would say it at the end anyway,” starter center and captain Josh Myers said at a teleconference last week. “I think my level of comfort in our safety is really high. There is nothing more our Ohio State coaches and trainers and staff can do to keep us safe. I can not say enough about what they do, and I would say that my level of concern for safety is small – I am not worried.
“I’m personally convinced that we’ll have a season, and I really wanted to say that restaurants are restaurants, bars, other places that are open where people have the freedom to do the things they want to do – which they really are. probably bad in the interest of their lives – I just feel like people our age can do these kinds of things, then I feel strongly that, if I want to, I should have the choice to do a season of football. I feel like it’s even a safer environment to be my teammates and in the facility and stay where it’s clean and safe. I think that is a safer environment than being somewhere else and going to restaurants and things like that. That, I just wanted to give my opinion on that. I believe that strongly, strongly. I have every confidence in the world in our coaches and trainers that they will keep us safe through this thing. ‘
If power shifts in sports and college athletes feel they have more of a voice than they ever have, the #WeWantToPlay movement on social media will be a test. The players understand the risk of playing in a pandemic and know the protocols that Ohio State followed at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. They want their collective voice to be heard.
The players adopted them while playing. And the coaches are really ready to play. Even the parents, who have their individual interest in their son before anything else, have expressed support for football.
“As parents, we strongly believe that our sons want to play next season and have the full confidence of the university and coaching staff along with the medical professionals have found a safe way to make that happen,” Ohio parents said in an open letter. “We believe this age group represents some of the healthiest individuals, although we recognize that the risk cannot be eliminated, we believe the risk is minimal and the season can happen safely and responsibly.”
But are the walls in the meeting rooms that are well above the athletic department too thick to hear a cry for a season from almost any corner?
They can be. The presidents of the Big Ten have come together – behind closed doors, of course – to reach a decision. It seems pretty close to midnight hitting a college football season in the Big Ten.
One last plea from the biggest stars in the league could lead to nothing more than a break.
But if there’s one player in the Big Ten who can save a season, it’s Justin Fields. He has proven that he can do anything else. He is ready to play another year for the Buckeyes. Not because he has to.
He wants to play.
