On March 12, 2020, the world as we knew it ground to a halt. Schools were canceled, games were delayed, and everybody retreated into their homes for what they thought would be a two-week quarantine. Perhaps most jarring on that Thursday afternoon was the cancellation of March Madness, the popular college basketball tournament that dominates sports through March and early April. It’s an annual staple, almost a holiday, and its presence was sorely missed.
This photo and the title photo are from CBSSports
Soon, virtually every sport in America was shut down, leaving a gaping hole in popular culture. The NBA Finals, the European Championship, The Masters, and perhaps most importantly the Olympics were delayed. The joy of watching sports, whether in person or on TV, was another casualty of COVID-19, almost an afterthought in the chaos of the spring of 2020. And even when many sports returned, the lack of fans took the spark out of the game. While there were and are certainly more dire consequences of the pandemic, the lack of athletic events was a challenge.
One year later, the hole created by the pandemic is beginning to be filled back in. On campus, our athletes are competing again. While indoor sports couldn’t have fans in attendance, outdoor sports could, and students jumped at the chance to be present with each other and cheer their teams on again. Most notable among these games was the championship game for men’s soccer. While the result didn’t go Covenant’s way, the game was thrilling from start to finish, and hundreds of students supported the Scots in a way they hadn’t been able to since 2019. Fans were allowed at football games in the fall and basketball games in the winter, and pretty much every sport is back into a normal schedule, albeit with some COVID- 19 induced bumps along the way.
Photo from CNN
To most people’s delight, March Madness also returned. Just over a year from the beginning of quarantine and the end of sports as we knew them, the tournament kicked back up again and delivered one of the most entertaining knockout rounds ever. Fans were back in the stands, and while they were lower in number than before the pandemic, they still provided a noticeable impact in the arenas, bringing the noise and support that sports during COVID had been missing.
From the first game to the last, the teams produced thrilling basketball and created some of the most fun storylines March Madness had ever seen, from 15-seeded Oral Roberts University making a Cinderella run to the Sweet Sixteen to Jalen Suggs’ half-court buzzer-beater for the win in overtime in the Final Four. This felt like a return to normalcy, a piece of the world we remember from before COVID-19, but have found hard to grasp over the last year. While we are yet to beat the virus and return to normal life, March Madness, and sports in general, has given us a taste of what we’re missed and has been an encouragement through these hard times.