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Life of an Athlete during covid story and photos courtesy of Bryce Couch
Senior Bryce Couch at the Bob Young Field
It’s imperative for us to find certainty in uncertainty in 2020, a year full of uncertainty, it’s imperative to find something consistent to hold onto. For some, COVID-19 has been an odd sort of blessing, allowing individuals to focus on growth and limit the outside distractions of everyday life; for others, this time of quarantine and fear has sadly allowed them uninterrupted time to indulge in their vices and to drown in the uncertainty. I find myself to be in the former category. I’ve been very fortunate over the pandemic to remain healthy and to be able to center and focus on growth. This will be the first fall in nearly a decade that I haven’t suited up and been able to play the sport that is synonymous with autumn. Regardless of the opinion surrounding the overly politicized and polarizing pandemic, there is one true fact, I do not have a football season this fall. End of story. In all honesty, I saw it coming and have had time to prepare for it since the early major signs of the pandemic. This is to say that there wasn’t a huge shock around the season being suspended, the biggest struggle came in the uncertainty. Which brings me back to the first sentence of this article; find certainty in uncertainty.
My certainty comes in preparing for the 2021 football season. My certainty comes in the fact that I have a full calendar year to prepare myself mentally, physically, and emotionally to perform at my highest ability. I found peace in the 100 push-up warmups at 5:30 a.m. I’ve found peace in the early morning conditioning on Saturdays. At the end of the day, I’ve found peace in the things that are the hardest. I’ve been able to shift my mindset from I have-to into I getto. The difference between these two mindsets is immense. I’m beyond blessed because I got to wake up and see the South Dakota sunrise every morning this summer before conditions on Bob Young Field. I’m blessed because I get to work hard and try to better myself everyday. I’m blessed because I get the opportunity to honor the sport I love by pouring my soul into preparation in a time when there isn’t a chance to compete in a game. This time away from football has been important to my growth outside of the game as well. A common thread from high school to college athletics is speaking out against the glaring racism that is present in our country. COVID-19 has given me, and many members of my team, to use our platform in a way that shines a light on things that are impacting communities all across the country. The pandemic has given us the opportunity to channel our focus into social, cultural, and community reform. It has given us the opportunity to give back to the community that tirelessly supports us, and to make the most out of our gifts and abilities. Nothing about COVID-19 is conventional, then again neither is putting on 25 pounds of equipment and throwing mind, body, and soul at the opponent for the sake of the game. It takes a certain spirit to stand up to a global pandemic and say, “I will use this as an opportunity to get better”, and I am proud of the efforts of my team, my classmates and USF as a whole to combat the pandemic and grow during this time; to find certainty in uncertainty.
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