If the 2020 college football season does not happen, no one's going to point the finger at Ohio State claiming the Buckeyes didn't pull their weight.
Head Buckeye Ryan Day has been one of the game's most passionate advocates for mask wearing since the spring, and now the program has released a hype video to keep the momentum going.
This video has all the bells and whistles you'd expect for a video hyping a big game on an upcoming Saturday, but instead of motivating the fan base to beat Wisconsin, they're trying to beat COVID-19 by putting a piece of cloth over their face.
In doing so, the program tries to juxtapose the sacrifices the Buckeyes are making on the practice field with the sacrifices the public can make in order to work toward a goal both groups share: an Ohio State football season.
"Everything about this is uncomfortable," a masked Day says on the practice field, "but we can handle it. That's the challenge that we're under right now. What are you willing to sacrifice?"
Is he talking to his team there, or his fan base?
"We want to give you something to hope for," the narrator adds over clips of Buckeye players -- masked -- straining through a workout. "We want to reward your sacrifice in the best way we know how. We want a season."
It's no accident this video dropped today, the first day of pre-season practices. Aside from all the other issues swirling around college football right now, the coaches and staff are clearly worried about the human, emotional element of starting a season they're not certain's going to happen -- of asking their players to pay the physical price football demands without the reward of football games at the end of that tunnel.