North Texas Daily

When the men’s basketball team secured its first overall title in 30 years, I watched as the crowd roared with excitement as the final seconds of the game clock trickled to zero followed by confetti raining from the rafters. 

The scenery inside the Super Pit took me back to when the soccer team captured their third straight conference championship last November. The joy, excitement and even the anxiety of not knowing who will win the big game produces a feeling unlike any other. 

This leads me to think about the beauty that can be found in sports. A lot of people tend to veer toward aspects such as the uncanny strength of football players, the mesmerizing ball-handling skills that are featured in soccer and basketball or the ability to command the direction of a softball or baseball while throwing it at the speeds of an automobile.

These are surface-level attractions sports junkies, such as myself, are drawn to when it comes to watching sports. 

However, one of the greatest beauties in sports is an athlete’s ability to overcome obstacles of great difficulty. It’s the core concept that not only gives valuable meaning to sports but it transcends them and exemplifies how we should handle difficulties in everyday life. 

I know I’m not alone when I say I am still struggling with the fact that the realm of sports is in a state of stagnation.

When I first saw the news about the suspension of the NBA season on March 11, 2020, I knew it was only a matter of time before UNT sports would feel the presence of the novel coronavirus.

When the time finally came and the athletic department methodically adjusted their athletics to combat the pandemic it involved the cancellation of numerous events, games and practices. It also involved making the smart and necessary decision to send most of, if not all, student-athletes home.

I write this to you with the mindset that the sports section at the North Texas Daily is not down for the count and it will not go away. Rather, it will change and adjust to the situation we have been given and above all else, overcome this challenge in the best way possible. 

I couldn’t be more proud of Rebekah Schulte who took up the challenge of stepping outside her comfort zone this semester and embraced the sports section as the designer and copy editor. Her habit of working to improve her page designs week after week always came to fruition as her work has been nothing short of amazing.

I’ve also been blown away with the content from our staff writers who have continuously worked to improve their writing and reporting. They are the lifeblood of this section — their diverse coverage and unbiased analysis of the sports at North Texas is something to behold.

These are very unprecedented and tumultuous times, but when I was hired as the sports editor I knew I had big shoes to fill (size 13 to be specific). I knew I was tasked with running this section no matter the circumstances and lifting it to new heights. Even though things will be different for the foreseeable future, I’m confident that even in the hardest times during this pandemic we will do what we do best and overcome any obstacle.

Featured Image: Sports editor Matt Suarez poses in Sycamore Hall on Aug. 29, 2019. Image by Will Baldwin