College football teams have started petitions to let seasons return. The Universities of Oregon, Los Angeles, San Diego University, and Santa Barbara have all made numerous social media posts describing how unjust it is that certain divisions are allowed to play depending on their circumstances they are in with Covid-19 . 

This can cause many problems between players and the NFL draft. A top-notch prospect from any division in college has the ability to be recruited for the draft, but what about the players who are not talked about? What about the players who worked so hard during the off-season. dreaming of putting up great numbers and statistics only to be let down because of a pandemic?

Dorian Robinson-Thompson, the projected fourth overall pick in the 2021 National Football League draft from the University of California, Los Angeles, started a dispute between many nationwide colleges and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletes. Thompson teamed up with the University of Southern California and the University of Oregon in order to fix a problem with the NAIA. 

Dorian Tweeted: “My appreciation for the game of football grows more and more as the days go on without it and I have never worked so hard in a single off season. Covid has really taught me to never take this game for granted because I thought it would be the year everything would come together.”

Thompson’s tweets were sadly unanswered. Although a pandemic has struck the world, is it fair that only some divisions get a shot to compete for a spot at the next level? Although he is almost guaranteed to compete at a professional level, Thompson’s final year of college football has been cut short.

The “underdogs” of college football may have worked extraordinarily hard to earn a starting spot in the eyes of the recruiters from different teams in the NFL, but without college football, this may just be a heartbreaking upset. Thompson, as well as many other players in Division-1 football, think it is unfair that certain divisions may play college ball. This could leave top prospects in the league forgotten about-with no statistics. Should college football players be in a bubble? Tested every practice? This is all being decided now by the NAIA. 

As Covid-19 shut down the nation, the decisions about sports and activities struck fast. With a dispute on the NAIA, there may be some reconsideration for the decision of the Pac-12 being cut. Thompson made the dispute viral and well known based on numerous social media accounts with tens of thousands of followers to let the NAIA know that he demands reasoning or a change. Many problems can occur with letting the football season play or be shut down, but shutting down certain divisions is unfair to the athletes. There is a massive advantage if the NAIA stands with their decision.