The pros and cons of reinstating

TO

PLAY OR NOT TO PLAY

Panorama debates the return of high school sports this fall

illustration by | JOANNE SUNG

DOMENIC FENOGLIO associate editor

Sports drive athletes to succeed in both the present and future. The environment that competition creates leads to friendships found nowhere else. For their mental health and futures, student-athletes need the return of sports.

COVID-19 has been tracked in the U.S. since the beginning of February. In that time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recorded 315 deaths due to the virus in adolescents aged 15-24. While these deaths are tragic and extremely important, it is important to note that over 11 times as many adolescents of this same age range die from suicide each year. The mental health of athletes rests heavily on the friendships and communities created through sports. Removing this support from athletes’ lives will take in the the midst of a pandemic would be an absolute disaster, contributing more problems to a year already historically chaotic.

To prove this statement, one needs to look no further than the professional sports teams that have tried to return to competition unnecessarily and suffered severe outbreaks of COVID-19 as a result. Back in August, the St. Louis Cardinals had nine players and seven staff members test positive for COVID-19. Consequently, one of the Cardinals’ staff members passed away.

While professional organizations have millions of dollars to tackle whatever problems may arise, high school sports programs lack the re

ATHLETES NEED THE RETURN OF SPORTS

a greater toll on their mental health than their physical health.

Additionally, for many athletes, success in school is motivated by a desire to play sports; this is the reality for students who feel that their talents lie on the field rather than the classroom. According to MSHSAA guidelines, students must pass three credits (or six classes per semester) in order to compete in a sport. In addition, school attendance during the day of a sporting event is required. Without the motivation to play, student athletes will not be held accountable for their academic performance, and their education will be negatively impacted.

Most importantly, more than 460,000 high school athletes go on to compete in an NCAA-sanctioned sport. Many of these athletes would sources to ensure testing on a regular basis or effective anti-infection measures. High school competitive sports are based around the cooperation of a team, where the players are working closely together. These close quarters could spell disaster in the middle of a pandemic; in an environment where large teams are all running, breathing and coming in contact with one another throughout every match, the spread of COVID-19 would be rapid and unforgiving, between both players and their families.

Aside from the public health risks, juggling the rigid schedule of sports with the challenges of distance learning and careful quarantine is a lot for any student to face. The detriment to mental health that could come about not have the option of attending college without this opportunity. On average, college graduates earn over $30,000 more than those with only a high school diploma. Taking away the competition of high school sports takes away the possibility of recruitment for thousands of potential collegiate athletes. With the cancellation of sports, these athletes are missing out on more than a season of high school competition. They are ultimately losing their futures.

The benefits sports have on its participants’ lives cannot accurately be measured, as they continue to help athletes long after they stop playing. However, high school athletes across the country are being denied these valuable experiences. This fall, high schools sports should return. p

SAFETY TAKES PRECEDENT OVER SPORTS

CARLY WOODHILL

The return of high school sports

22 OPNIONS | A & E

opinions editor because of this would outweigh the benefits of returning to sports.

Additionally, not all students in these sports could return even if athletics were to come back. Some students have family members that are at higher risk for COVID-19 and need to be more careful than their peers to keep their loved ones safe. These students would have to refrain from playing sports, meaning the return of athletics unfairly prevents these students from participating.

Before anything else, public safety and the wellbeing of students must be preserved. COVID-19 needs to be stopped, and opening up high school sports would be a mistake that we can’t afford — especially when the cost is human lives. p

GAMEPLAY

How the game is run “Fall Guys” offers quick and enjoyable game play. Many of the rounds end quickly, so playing a lot of games in one sitting isn’t difficult. Because contestants are eliminated once they lose, the player can immediately leave and join a new lobby, starting fresh. However, there are a massive amount of cheaters and hackers that plague the game’s community. “Fall Guys” also fails to retain many players due to its basic game play which can become stale.

MECHANICS

How the character is controlled Aside from moving, jumping, gliding and holding, players rely on the different maps to bring mechanical changes. This is one of the best aspects of “Fall Guys”; there is no need to worry about a learning curve or how to perform complex tasks. Despite the simple movements, characters can be hard to maneuver due to the nature of the camera controls. At times, the player’s point of view gets out of control, which makes manipulating the character much harder.

DESIGN

How the game looks and feels The game is designed with plenty of vibrant colors along with fun and oversized objects. Because the developers wanted “Fall Guys” to be accessible and easy for anyone to play, the game doesn’t require powerful machinery to run. However, players are not allowed to choose their own username. Instead, everyone is assigned a number. Unfortunately, all of the characters have a similar shape, so pinpointing where specific players or friends

FALL GUYS: HIT OR MISS? A review of the different aspects to the new and popular video game “Fall Guys”

DEVANSHU PANDEY YONGJOON KWEON staff writer staff writer

ABOUT THE GAME:

“Fall Guys” is an up-and-coming video game that places 60 cute oval blobs into party style minigames. Players go through a series of four to five rounds. After each round, contestants are eliminated until a single winner is left.

are during a minigame is difficult.

LEVELING UP

How the game rewards players There is a reward system that lets players get costumes for their character. The better players perform, the faster they unlock the different outfits and designs for their “Fall Guy” character. Unfortunately, the reward system does not benefit long-time players as the leveling system caps early. New players may feel good unlocking all the outfits and characters, but more experienced players might find that the outfits are repetitive and will have no incentive to play the game.