Miami-Dade Mayor sees empty to sparse Hard Rock Stadium for Miami football games

In an interview with the Miami Herald on Wednesday, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Jimenez sees empty to sparse stadiums throughout the county including whenever the Miami football season occurs at Hard Rock Stadium.

Football is the one sport that has not had its season affected directly as a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic. The Miami football program lost 11 spring practices and its spring game that was scheduled for April 11 at Traz Powell Stadium canceled after all college sports shut down in mid-March because of Covid-19.

Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Jimenez was extensive in an interview with the Miami Herald about his thoughts about the Miami Dolphins, Heat, Marlins and Hurricanes and the procedures they might have to follow to begin playing. Who would be allowed to attend the games was left undetermined.

Family of the players would likely be allowed in first, then University staff and finally season ticket holders. Everything that has occurred in the last eight weeks since the cancelation of all collegiate sports occurred on the eve of the NCAA Tournament selection has been fluid.

The cancelation of sports for this is an extensive amount of time is unprecedented. Sports played through World War II. After 9/11/01 sports were put on hold for a week. The Miami football program lost two weeks’ worth of games in 2017 that included the cancelation of a game at Arkansas State because of Hurricane Irma.

In 2017 we knew that the Hurricanes would resume games at a certain point. The 2020 college football season is very much in doubt and opened ended if and how it will begin. Jimenez laid out what to expect with the knowledge that these are unchartered times we live in and the situation is fluid.

"“Knowing what we know today and not what we may know tomorrow, I don’t see that (expecting full or close-to-full stadiums and arenas.) being real realistic. I see empty stadiums or I see sparse stadiums, let’s put it that way. Because there is no antiviral and there is no vaccine.So as long as that’s the case, and then if we think the virus is as deadly and also we think the virus is as communicable as we do right now, it’s going to be very hard to do that. It’s too early. Again, a lot of it has to do with social distancing and wearing a mask and entrances and the ability of people to keep away from each other.So, again, I’m open to listening and going through it and then working with our doctors to see that we minimize the risk as much as possible. Again, you’ll never get to a zero-risk game where there’s no risk at all. But can you manage the risk? Is it an activity that’s safe to do and managing that riskThese are about 100 people that are playing a contact sport. So how do you safeguard that? We don’t allow contact sports in our parks. But again, the parks are for millions of people, not for a limited number of people. It’s up to what their rules are, how are they going to safeguard their players.If it’s something that we feel that it’s safe, look, nothing is ever 100 percent safe. But if it’s a safe activity for a limited number of people to be participating in and there are safeguards before and after to limit any exposure, then again we’re more than willing to have those conversations and hopefully we can make it happen.”"

The University of Miami has 30,000 season ticket holders. The Dolphins have mentioned that 15,000 could eventually be allowed into their games. If that is the case at Miami football games how will it be determined who is allowed in? The projection has to be the above, family, staff and then season ticket holders.

Within the season ticket holders being allowed in expect the biggest boosters, among those the Golden Canes to have priority. When you donate thousands to millions of dollars every year to the University of Miami and the athletic department you are going to receive priority.

The reception with left out season ticket holders will be interesting. Some will likely understand while others feel be alienated. The University of Miami, the board of trustees and athletic director Blake James are going to have very difficult decisions to make. It will be impossible to please everyone.