I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

Like I said on the other post, we in Cali are bunch of pansy ass P*ssies.

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

Yes, old-as-hell politicians get the best health care.

okaydo said:

---

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

Yes, old-as-hell politicians get the best health care.

---

When was the last College Student to die from Covid?

NVBear78 said:

---

okaydo said:

---

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

Yes, old-as-hell politicians get the best health care.

---

When was the last College Student to die from Covid?

---

I don't know if this is the last college student to die of COVID-19, but this college student did die of it.
https://www.wndu.com/2020/11/03/coroner-releases-report-in-death-of-grace-college-student/

okaydo said:

---

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

Yes, old-as-hell politicians get the best health care.

---

100% this.

01Bear said:

---

NVBear78 said:

---

okaydo said:

---

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

Yes, old-as-hell politicians get the best health care.

---

When was the last College Student to die from Covid?

---

I don't know if this is the last college student to die of COVID-19, but this college student did die of it.
https://www.wndu.com/2020/11/03/coroner-releases-report-in-death-of-grace-college-student/

---

Michael Lang, an 18 year old freshman at the University of Dayton died of COVID-19 the week before Bethany died.

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

I guess that would depend on what you consider high profile. If you mean someone connected to the Trump administration, there's at least Herman Cain (see, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/30/politics/herman-cain-dies-coronavirus/index.html).

Aside from politics, in the evangelical world, plenty of pastors and religious leaders have died from Covid-19. Ironically, many of them did so after proclaiming God's blessing while defying the medical and public health experts. Unfortunately, there are too many of these deaths to list.

Of course, for the families of the over 200,000 who have died of Covid-19, all of the deceased were probably high-profile in their lives. Diminishing the lives of these people because they weren't newsmakers is a bit too dehumanizing and repugnant, IMHO. It suggests the only people who matter are newsmakers or the powerful and well-connected. That goes against all of the American democratic values on which I was raised, not to mention the values of our beloved alma mater, which educates rich and poor, powerful and marginalized, well-connected and refugee alike.

Finally, the idea that Covid-19 is only dangerous insofar as it is deadly is completely fallacious. As has been pointed out repeatedly in numerous threads on this forum, there is a wide range between "100% healthy" and "dead" with Covid-19. Not only are there patients who are hospitalized and intubated, but others suffer long-lasting damage (including scarring of lung tissue and organ failure). Unfortunately, since this disease is so new, nobody knows what the long-term effects are likely to be. While you're willing to risk the (long-term) well-being of thousands of young people for your own entertainment, not everyone agrees with that position.

Does the OP have inside knowledge on the current status of the game and season (and will he share)?

Does he know Knowlton "failed?"

wifeisafurd said:

---

Does the OP have inside knowledge on the current status of the game and season (and will he share)?

Does he know Knowlton "failed?"

---

I know the UW game was canceled. That is a catastrophic fail.

hanky1 said:

---

wifeisafurd said:

---

Does the OP have inside knowledge on the current status of the game and season (and will he share)?

Does he know Knowlton "failed?"

---

I know the UW game was canceled. That is a catastrophic fail.

---

If that is the standard, the Pac may have no ADs by seasons end under your approach.. Maybe it is the CEO's fail for waiting too long to act, leaving no time for make-up games.

NVBear78 said:

---

okaydo said:

---

Yogi Bear said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

How long has it been since our last high-profile COVID-19 death? We have a lot of old-as-hell politicians getting it and even they seem to be recovering OK. Assuming that the infected players are properly quarantined during recovery, if you're going to have a season at all, it would seem that one positive test shouldn't derail a game.

We have a bad habit of letting the City push us around.

---

Yes, old-as-hell politicians get the best health care.

---

When was the last College Student to die from Covid?

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

I think the final answer is yet unknown. But from what I can see he appeared to be caught off guard by the COB ruling. IMO the big question is should he have been? If he knew these rules from day 1 then yes he made a sensational blunder.

If however the rules were changed mid stream he should be given time to make alternative arrangements. I do believe he is culpable here but until everything is known (which likely won't happen) just a bit of patience seems reasonable.

I think in hindsight it made more sense to start the season a few weeks earlier and have a few weekends to possibly reschedule missed games. The P12 wanted more time for players to "prepare" for the season which is certainly commendable, but the MWC seems to have been able to start play earlier with little impact.

If Cal football is unable to play games due to the current rules and there was no alternative plan the Knowlton is done IMO. They won't fire him but he will not likely be able to face the donors with any real credibility.

In fact just today, Saeb Erekat, top Palestinian negotiator, dies age 65.

Welcome to the City of Berkeley Mr. Knowlton.

We have had players pass away while running up a hill. The virus ravages the lungs and heart. Just because you don't drop dead in a couple days doesn't mean you're not screwed for life if you have this virus. There is no long term data on anything. It's frankly embarrassing to see so many Cal (maybe alumni?) fans not grasp the severity of this situation.

bearsandgiants said:

---

We have had players pass away while running up a hill. The virus ravages the lungs and heart. Just because you don't drop dead in a couple days doesn't mean you're not screwed for life if you have this virus. There is no long term data on anything. It's frankly embarrassing to see so many Cal (maybe alumni?) fans not grasp the severity of this situation.

---

Very true. There is nothing Knowlton can do. You cant house 109 people in a hotel for months. The cost is prohibitive . This season should be cancelled. It was never going to work.

oskidunker said:

---

bearsandgiants said:

---

We have had players pass away while running up a hill. The virus ravages the lungs and heart. Just because you don't drop dead in a couple days doesn't mean you're not screwed for life if you have this virus. There is no long term data on anything. It's frankly embarrassing to see so many Cal (maybe alumni?) fans not grasp the severity of this situation.

---

Very true. There is nothing Knowlton can do. You cant house 109 people in a hotel for months. The cost is prohibitive . This season should be cancelled. It was never going to work.

---

I am as big a Cal football fan as most posters on this board. But I agree with Oski on this. We know that the Virus is very contagious and very deadly to a large segment of the population and dangerous in many ways to an even larger segment of the population. Children and younger adults might not suffer as much from the immediate effects of the Virus as older adults; but they are not immune from many of the longer-term adverse effects of the Virus.
So we should use some sane level of caution in dealing with the Virus.

In addition the Virus is spiking throughout the US at this time. Although it is spiking in CA, It is spiking here much less than in other parts of the US (yes, in many states where CA is viewed as a bunch of wussy's.

Many people (on and off this board) argue that there is no reason to cancel CFB because only a few players have died or shown immediate ill effects from contracting the Virus.
But the players and those in immediate contact with the players (coaches, staff, etc) come into contact with thousand of people (in and around where they live, eat, shop, etc) and hundreds of their own relatives.
If we could put the players coaches and staff in a bubble, it would be much easier to say don't worry about the Virus and play football. But in the current circumstances especially with the Virus about to swamp the ability of US health care facilities to deal with the Virus, there is no way that I can say that Cal should ignore the precautions that are meant to provide minimal protection against the spread of the Virus

Half the posters here believe the "virus" disappeared six days ago.

Fiat lux, my ass.

A lifelong friend, a brilliant person, an MD now retired, offered this insight:

The answer as to why such draconian measures have been imposed is simple actually: flawed models, election-year panic, insatiable greed and lust for power, hysteria, and fuzzy thinking, if any, superimposed on a docile, ignorant, ethically-impoverished populace.

Hanky, your first mistake was expecting common sense from the city of Berkeley.

Read today's Wilner's article.

wifeisafurd said:

---

Read today's Wilner's article.

---

Is that the article dated Nov 9 ?

BearGreg said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

Let's be clear that no one knows anything about the machinations between the University, the COB and the broader P12 as it relates to Cal's single asymptomatic player. The P12s protocols were unclear and non-specific about the instance that has occurred with the Cal program. The COB interpreted it in a way that went against how everyone else nationally has interpreted it. The notion that the P12, Chancellor Christ and/or Jim Knowlton would first be omniscient enough to know where and how subjective interpretation could occur is a stretch. Remember that the COB approved the P12s protocols prior to the season being approved. Secondly, even if Knowlton could have predicted that somehow, someway the COB would be a fundamental problem, it's not his call to allow the program to move out of Berkeley to circumvent it. That's the Chancellor's purview. The relationship between the University and the COB spans a host of issues and they do their best to manage that relationship to the benefit of all the outstanding issues.

Blame and judgment are easy. Being open and curious require more effort. When and if the details come out, we can then have a more objective discussion on Cal's leadership.

---

Great Post.

BearGreg said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

Let's be clear that no one knows anything about the machinations between the University, the COB and the broader P12 as it relates to Cal's single asymptomatic player. The P12s protocols were unclear and non-specific about the instance that has occurred with the Cal program. The COB interpreted it in a way that went against how everyone else nationally has interpreted it. The notion that the P12, Chancellor Christ and/or Jim Knowlton would first be omniscient enough to know where and how subjective interpretation could occur is a stretch. Remember that the COB approved the P12s protocols prior to the season being approved. Secondly, even if Knowlton could have predicted that somehow, someway the COB would be a fundamental problem, it's not his call to allow the program to move out of Berkeley to circumvent it. That's the Chancellor's purview. The relationship between the University and the COB spans a host of issues and they do their best to manage that relationship to the benefit of all the outstanding issues.

Blame and judgment are easy. Being open and curious require more effort. When and if the details come out, we can then have a more objective discussion on Cal's leadership.

---

Injunctive relief.

2701RidgeRoad said:

---

A lifelong friend, a brilliant person, an MD now retired, offered this insight:

The answer as to why such draconian measures have been imposed is simple actually: flawed models, election-year panic, insatiable greed and lust for power, hysteria, and fuzzy thinking, if any, superimposed on a docile, ignorant, ethically-impoverished populace.

---

How does your brilliant friend reconcile this "insight" with the success other countries have had in controlling the virus and re-starting their economies? Was it an election year everywhere?

BearForce1 said:

---

2701RidgeRoad said:

---

A lifelong friend, a brilliant person, an MD now retired, offered this insight:

The answer as to why such draconian measures have been imposed is simple actually: flawed models, election-year panic, insatiable greed and lust for power, hysteria, and fuzzy thinking, if any, superimposed on a docile, ignorant, ethically-impoverished populace.

---

How does your brilliant friend reconcile this "insight" with the success other countries have had in controlling the virus and re-starting their economies? Was it an election year everywhere?

---

Exactly. I am amazed at "smart" Americans that have no knowledge of the world outside our borders or even outside their little bubble.

After reading the Wilcox presser, he certainly is tying to distance himself from the administration. I guess they are still modeling what to do, then actually doing anything.

Forgive me if (1) this question has been asked and answered in any of the threads about this topic (I haven't seen an answer thus far) - and (2) if it's a dumb question...

I don't understand how the COB has any authority over what the football team does if they practice and play games outside of Berkeley. I understand that it has control to the extent that some players live in the dorms... But, what if those freshmen players were to live with other players/in private residences for the rest of the season?

I guess my question boils down to: How does the COB have control over the extracurricular activities of its residents? Can they control the activities of all of the residents of Berkeley? (i.e. if they go shop or teach in a school outside Berkeley; or attend a public rally where people don't all wear masks, or a go to a sporting event outside Berkeley - etc., etc., etc.) Can the COB control the activities of the individuals that work in Berkeley, but reside elsewhere?

I just don't see how the COB has any authority to control what the residents of Berkeley do when they are outside the COB. Someone help me understand what I'm missing...

Yikes people calm the F down. It's just ONE football game in the midst of a 1-in-100-years PANDEMIC. Frankly all of CFB is a waste this year.

Alkiadt said:

---

BearGreg said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

---

Let's be clear that no one knows anything about the machinations between the University, the COB and the broader P12 as it relates to Cal's single asymptomatic player. The P12s protocols were unclear and non-specific about the instance that has occurred with the Cal program. The COB interpreted it in a way that went against how everyone else nationally has interpreted it. The notion that the P12, Chancellor Christ and/or Jim Knowlton would first be omniscient enough to know where and how subjective interpretation could occur is a stretch. Remember that the COB approved the P12s protocols prior to the season being approved. Secondly, even if Knowlton could have predicted that somehow, someway the COB would be a fundamental problem, it's not his call to allow the program to move out of Berkeley to circumvent it. That's the Chancellor's purview. The relationship between the University and the COB spans a host of issues and they do their best to manage that relationship to the benefit of all the outstanding issues.

Blame and judgment are easy. Being open and curious require more effort. When and if the details come out, we can then have a more objective discussion on Cal's leadership.

---

Great Post.

---

Yes, great post. I can't really blame Knowlton at this point. What was he supposed to do? We're giving this a try, doing the best we can to make it work. I'm glad we are. We knew it was going to be potentially problematic.

It's just hard to pivot as fast on this as would be desirable. With 20/20 hindsight, we should've started practice in early September and games in early October, but it was pretty hard to make that decision in early August, when COVID was still on its "little summer wave". Remember that Arizona and even SoCal were getting slammed by the virus in July.

This 14 day thing sucks.

BearGreg said:

---

hanky1 said:

---

I feel terrible for our players who work their butt off only to have their season threatened by complete lack of imagination and foresight by our athletic department leader.

The blanket contact tracing quarantine required by the city of Berkeley makes no sense because
1) it goes against what every other medical professional in every other sports league has recommended and
2) it just makes no freakin common sense. None whatsoever.

This should've been apparent to Knowlton from the very beginning and he should've just either 1) cancelled the whole damn season or 2) found another city to play in.

Under these rules, the only way we could play football is if every player and coach on the roster made it through the year without contracting COVID (which is >99% harmless to people in their age group anyways). This was always unrealistic. Plans should've been made to play/practice/live elsewhere.

The failure to recognize this was a failure in leadership. Complete failure.

Strike 1 for Knowlton. Considering how catastrophic this strike was, does he even deserve another at-bat?

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Let's be clear that no one knows anything about the machinations between the University, the COB and the broader P12 as it relates to Cal's single asymptomatic player. The P12s protocols were unclear and non-specific about the instance that has occurred with the Cal program. The COB interpreted it in a way that went against how everyone else nationally has interpreted it. The notion that the P12, Chancellor Christ and/or Jim Knowlton would first be omniscient enough to know where and how subjective interpretation could occur is a stretch. Remember that the COB approved the P12s protocols prior to the season being approved. Secondly, even if Knowlton could have predicted that somehow, someway the COB would be a fundamental problem, it's not his call to allow the program to move out of Berkeley to circumvent it. That's the Chancellor's purview. The relationship between the University and the COB spans a host of issues and they do their best to manage that relationship to the benefit of all the outstanding issues.

Blame and judgment are easy. Being open and curious require more effort. When and if the details come out, we can then have a more objective discussion on Cal's leadership.

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Greg, what bothers me is that Cal is not nimble enough after telling us for months about running all these models to be able to deal with one COVID case. What you are telling us instead is it comes down the Chancellor willing to sacrifice the football program for other objectives with the City. I have seen this before. We wert told things would be different. And I say to you and the Friends of Berkeley, actions speak louder than words.

Without a chance of success this season or the ability to play, the recruiting class will lose recruits, the donor base will lose donors, and when the pandemics continues into next year, the portal will be flooded by Cal players looking for someplace they know they can play football. And the coaching staff that was undermined by the administration will be long gone.