Last fall was a dark one in the halls of VSU.

The thrills and excitement of a Saturday down south, or rather a Saturday down in Valdosta, were nowhere to be found as the football team was forced to forgo their 2020 season.

We all know how pervasive COVID-19 has been throughout the world, and we have all felt its effects in our own little personal worlds.

Maybe I am biased but considering the passion people in the south feel for football, I think it could be argued that COVID-19 has had especially devastating effects in the world of common football fans.

For many, the reality of a fall with no football here at VSU was nothing more than a dreadful reminder that COVID-19 was ravaging life as we know it. People need things that bring them comfort, and that is what football is for millions of people.

Life can get pretty dark when you lose things that bring you joy.

That is exactly why my excitement levels are rising for the start of the Blazers’ 2021 football season.

It has certainly been too long since we’ve seen the boys take the field, especially since the last time ended in a three-point loss to West Florida on Nov. 30, 2019. Before that game, the Blazers had accomplished an astonishing 25-game winning streak.

Redemption is the door of the VSU football program, but more so than that, feelings of normalcy are on their way back to football fans who could really use them during these uncertain times.

Walking around campus, or sitting in class, and seeing the faces of friends, peers and professors covered in masks can be a depressing sight. My hope is that sitting in the stands on Saturdays and watching VSU’s boys of fall return to the field will inspire hope and happiness in some hollowed souls.

Don’t let those who are indifferent to the sport tell you that “it’s just a game.”

It’s not—not in this case, at least.

It is normalcy, consolation, a relief and solace.

It is everything to the right person, and it is a beautiful distraction from a sickly part of reality that has been rearing its ugly head for almost two years now.

GO BLAZERS!

Written by Zach Edmondson, sports editor. Graphic courtesy of Gracie Lucas.