A week after an attack was made on New York City and Washington D.C., the wounds of a nation are slowly being mended. Not only has the nation been affected as a whole due to the recent happenings, but so has the sports world in general.
Hundreds of college football stadiums and locker rooms remained empty this week, as footballs teams around the country took the Saturday off.
The Southland Conference decided to postpone all athletic events through Sunday afternoon. The Nicholls women’s soccer game against Southern Mississippi, the Colonel volleyball tournament at the University of New Orleans, the football team’s game against Arkansas State, and the men and women cross country teams’ meet at Stephen F. Austin have all been postponed.
“We are in complete agreement with the decision made by the Southland Conference,” said Rob Bernardi, Nicholls athletics director. “As a group, we feel that it’s only appropriate to take this weekend off to pay our respects to the many families around the country.”
In the college football world in general, 58 Division I-A games were postponed or canceled in the wake of Tuesday’s terrorist attacks.
“The games themselves are insignificant in the face of what happened,” said Cedric Dempsey, the NCAA president.
The NFL also took Sunday to “pause, grieve and reflect,” said NFL Commissioner, Paul Tagliabue.
“We understand those individuals in sports want who want to play, but we can empathize with those who want to take the weekend off and resume their personal lives and professional careers next week,” he said.
Some NFL teams have established funds and memorial stories for those killed and injured in the attacks.
The Washington Redskins established a fund for Pentagon victims, while the San Francisco 49ers cut practice short and donated 70 pints of blood.
“You talk about something that brings people together and makes us one unified group of human beings, whether it is football or whomever, this is it,” said Darrell Green, cornerback for the Washington Redskins.
New York Giants running back Tiki Barber and fullback Greg Comella collected and delivered toys for children of the firemen lost in the falling of the World Trade Center.
The Tennessee Titans helped to launch a disaster relief fund to aid the American Red Cross, and the Atlanta Falcons will play a flag football game next week to raise money for New York Police officers and firemen.
Although the action will resume this week in regards to the sports world, it will take a while for the United States as a whole to recover from the tragic happenings.
Even though the situations are grim, and the loss is great, American as a whole, athletes and non-athletes alike, have pulled together to make a difference in the lives of those affected.
