The Bible says that in the beginning God created the universe in six days, and on the seventh day he rested. It’s rumored that he decided to rest that day to watch game five of the 2008 World Series and said, “Let there be Lights Out Lidge.” That was pitcher Brad Lidge who then invented sports as he sealed the title for the Philadelphia Phillies.

For so many Philadelphia sports fans, especially ones around my age and younger, that was the dawn of sports fandom.

For ten-year-old me specifically it was the start of wanting to be the greatest baseball player of all time.

Unfortunately I only grew to be five foot seven (but really five foot six) and was cut from my high school team sophomore year. By my freshman year of college I was a degenerate sports fan, because if I wasn’t a world class athlete, I would for sure live through people that were.

I spent two years in an academic nebula as a business major, bored and hating school. Then Rowan added the Sports Communication and Media major, I joined The Whit as a beat writer, became the assistant sports editor – and then took the job over after Jaiden Campana graduated.

I started an internship over the summer producing sports documentaries and once I turned 21 I started sports gambling (and winning) as a hobby.

That was a very long way to say sports are a very large part of my life. My school, my work, my hobbies. It’s all sports.

I’ve said once, “I want to work in sports because if there’s ever a time without any sports a job will be the least of my problems.”

Then the darnedest thing happened.

It’s been two weeks now since the NBA postponed their season followed by all other major sports in the next few days, which affects me on a few different levels. 

And listen, I know there’s people dying and people struggling to make ends meet because they can’t work while quarantined at home and those problems are OBVIOUSLY more important than me not having sports, but this article isn’t about serious issues. I think the first three sentences made that very clear.

So, this worldwide pandemic affects ME because (and I’m using myself as hopefully a microcosm of sports fans as a whole and I hope others can relate) as a sports editor there’s really nothing I can cover. 

All sports at Rowan have been cancelled for the year. I have to get creative to look for content so I can’t wait to see what the writers and I come up with.

Profesionally, outside of school, I’m a little worried, too. We really don’t know how long this is going to last so we don’t know if sports content producers, which is what I want to do, will start being laid off with little to nothing to cover.

I graduate in the summer and if the job market is full of people who already have experience that got laid off then I’m a little worried a job may be hard to come by.

Also, as far as making documentaries goes, it’s hard to socially distance while interviewing someone on camera.

Lastly, I’m bored.

Sports took up so much of my time that I’m realizing how long days are now. On a regular night I’ll put a game on at around six o’clock and then it’s nonstop sports until maybe one in the morning.

For the first few days I found myself sitting around looking for anything to do during those hours. I’ve basically filled all my dead time with TV, podcasts and social media.

I’ve been taking a lot of naps. I can’t be the only one who became a professional napper over this two week spring break.

In the time when i’m awake I’ve been watching new shows and old episodes of podcasts I like. Not sports podcasts though.

I’ve really cut all sports out because any reminder of what I’m missing is just going to make me a little sad. I realize that’s dramatic but it’s true.

As classes start back up and The Whit gets going again I’m sure I’ll be taking in and writing about sports content more, but I quit cold turkey the night the NBA postponed the season.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that the MLB is eying mid-July to start the season which is so far away. I get they have to wait until everything is safe and the players need another spring training to make sure they don’t over exert themselves and get hurt and thats all FINE but as a sports fan it’s tough to hear.

So, until then we’ll all find ways to fill our sports fixes either with classic games, video games or other hobbies altogether.

But, and I’m talking directly to Sports now, whenever you’re ready to come back to us, we’ll be here with open arms.

For comments/questions about this story, email sports@thewhitonline.com or tweet @TheWhitOnline.