the
Volume 118, Issue 15
VISTA “Our Words, Your Voice.”
vistanews1903 @thevista1903 @thevista1903 The Vista ucentralmedia.com Tuesday, February 9, 2021
Football signee finds new opportunity
INSIDE
Overwatch 2 Op-Ed
Competitive Overwatch player and president of esports at UCO gives his thoughts on Blizzard’s news. See Pg. 3
(Photo of the UCO football locker room. On Feb. 3, 34 players signed letters of intent to play for the university in the fall. All signees are from the state of Oklahoma, and the 34 players are a new high for head football coach Nick Bobeck. Provided/Broncho Sports)
Bryce McKinnis @McKinnisBryce Managing Editor
Basketball Recap
Sports Editor Tanner Johnson breaks down the Broncho’s win against Missouri Western. See Pg.4
Athletics Postponed The freezing temperatures for the forseeable future have led to some athletic events being postponed. See Pg. 3
Weather Forecast Take a look at what temperatures to expect in the coming week. See Pg. 2
Choctaw High School senior Terrill Davis penned his National Letter of Intent on Wednesday to play wide receiver at UCO. During this time last year, Davis had no aspirations to play college football, instead he was aiming for a college basketball scholarship. Davis was a stellar point guard for the YellowJackets basketball team be-
fore making the switch to football his senior year. He said that COVID-19 shutdowns prompted his decision to join the YellowJackets football team. “I was looking for something else I could do since all the gyms were shut down,” Davis said. That’s when Choctaw teammate Jordan Mukes, a highly-rated senior defensive back headed to the University of Oklahoma next year, invited Davis to join him on the gridiron. “Jordan would tell me to come to the field all the time,” Davis said, “and
me going and working with him made me fall in love with football.” Davis had last played football during his freshman year, although he said he did not take the sport seriously then. “It was just something to keep me busy,” Davis said. His senior season, however, told a different story. It did not take long for him to rethink his future after scoring a game-winning touchdown against Booker T. Washington in his first game. Continued on Pg. 4
What I learned from having COVID-19 Jacob Silva
@jdsilva_ Editor-in-Chief
I was diagnosed with COVID-19 on Dec. 21, and through that experience I found new perspectives, both good and bad. Even the good things came with their own burdens. As I spent Christmas and New Year’s Day locked up in my room, only seeing my family through my window as they dropped off food, (that I could not taste unfortunately) I became more grateful for those holidays I had spent with them. I became more grateful for frontline health workers that have dealt with this pandemic up close for nearly a year now. As for the bad perspective I gained, it
centers around the idea of the concept of public health, and playing a part in your community. Now, I don’t blame a specific person for why I became sick with COVID-19. I had been cautious, but ultimately I couldn’t avoid it after my roommate had caught it. For the last year almost every time I’ve left my house thinking, “I’m wearing this mask to protect those who are highrisk and to help this virus end.” I always assumed that if I did catch it, being 24 and healthy would keep me from the battle I’d seen high-risk individuals fight for the last year. I was wrong about that. I’ve had exercise-induced asthma since I was young, and the virus took every opportunity it could to remind me of it. It kept me in bed for near-
ly three full weeks. There were four nights where I considered calling an ambulance to take me to the hospital since I was afraid to go to sleep. Breathing had become something I had to consciously think about in order for it to keep happening. I had no energy or strength. If I forgot to do one of the five preventative measures I needed to do, such as refilling my humidifier or putting vapor rub on my chest, I’d have another night of being afraid to go to sleep because breathing became so difficult. I’ve had pneumonia before. It didn’t feel like that. It felt like there was a deep pain in my lungs — almost like there was an open wound. Continued on Pg. 2