#College football cancellation talk fueled by heart condition linked to COVID-19

Enlarge Image

Myocarditis, the inflammation of the heart, has become a big reason why the Power 5 conferences are considering canceling the fall season.
AP

The Power Five conferences weren’t just worried about their athletes contracting the coronavirus but a heart condition that could come with it, causing them to consider postponing the fall sports season.

Myocarditis — an inflammation of the heart muscle being linked to COVID-19 — is one of the big factors that went into the Big Ten’s expected decision to nix its fall season. At least five Big Ten athletes along with several other athletes in other conferences have been diagnosed with myocarditis, according to ESPN.

Myocarditis, while rare, has shown up more in patients with coronavirus than other viral infections such as the common cold or the flu, according to limited studies done during the pandemic. If untreated, it can cause heart damage or sudden cardiac arrest. Severe myocarditis weakens the heart so that the rest of the body doesn’t get enough blood.

The long-term effects of myocarditis have been discussed among the brass of the Big Ten, Pac-12 and other conferences and reports about the condition played a role in the MAC postponing its fall sports as well, according to ESPN.

Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby told the Associated Press on Sunday the “growing evidence and the growing pool of data around myocarditis” is one of the reasons the situation around college athletics is not in a better place today than a few weeks ago.

A Big Ten spokesman told multiple outlets no official vote had been taken, but the presidents are expected to meet again Monday night, according to the Lansing State Journal. The Detroit Free Press reported that in one vote Big Ten vote the school presidents voted 12-2 to not play this fall.

Leaders of the Power Five conference met on Sunday to discuss canceling the fall season. The Pac-12 is in favor of doing so while the SEC, ACC and Big 12 are holding out, Dan Patrick reported on his radio show.