Publisher's Note: There Are Still Stories To Tell
I was driving to work on Sept. 11, 2001, wondering what exactly was going to go into sports section that day, that week, and maybe even longer.
I had been sports editor of my newspaper for a little more than two years at that point, but I had been in the business of journalism for 13 years. The attacks on the United States were certainly going to shut down the national sports, and I wasn't sure what would happen with our high schools.
But I knew that there were still stories to tell, and it was our job to tell them.
We didn't have much of a problem filling our sports section that week. The high schools played on, and there were stories to tell from that. And the impact nationally was a story line that played out for a long time.
I had the same feelings on Thursday, when the NCAA canceled its winter and spring championships, and the Big Ten canceled all of its sports for the rest of the academic year, over concerns about the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.
No NCAA tournament for Iowa's men and women's basketball teams. No Hawkeyes winning the NCAA wrestling championships. And all of that spring sports coverage was gone, too.
But there are still things to write about, and I will do that here in the coming months.
This week will be all about reviewing the winter seasons — what happened, the impact of no postseason — and a look ahead at the future.
There might be a media availability with athletics director Gary Barta soon, and maybe more availabilities with coaches and athletes.
There will be no NFL Pro Day at Iowa, but there is still the NFL draft. Where do A.J. Epenesa and Tristan Wirfs go in the first round? Who takes Michael Ojemudia and Nate Stanley, and when? Where does Geno Stone land? And there's free agency for former Hawkeyes.
How many national player of the year awards does Luka Garza win? How many All-American awards? Any awards for Kathleen Doyle? Where will she play professionally?
And there will be breaking news, too. The coronavirus isn't going away. Will it impact spring football? What about summer workouts? Recruiting?
You may see some new names writing here in addition to me. There are still some details to work out.
We can do fun stories, too, and I'm likely going to ask for your help on some of those.
You can be a part of this, too. Sign up for an account (it's free) and make comments on stories. Start a dialogue in the Community. Tell your friends.
Will this be a little more difficult? Absolutely. This was going to be a busy time, and a lot of the content you'll see in the next couple of weeks was originally scheduled for a few weeks later.
This is going to be an interesting time, one we have never seen. A week ago we were thinking about the NCAA tournament, then plans changed.
Those stories aren't going to be told.
But I'm going to keep telling the ones that are out there.
