In her first public appearance since what amounted to a six-week fight with COVID-19, April is returning to society in the finest way a Southern momma could.
Tommy Clopton, a high school principal, and April, a school librarian, both contracted the virus at some point in late July. Tommy and April fought some of the worst that COVID-19 has to provide. “He was psychological,” states April. Tommy just felt completely recovered last week and its taken April an additional week to feel Okay.
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – April Clopton stepped out of the white Chevy Tahoe all set for football.
Using her most festive Southern Miss top, jean shorts and brown sandals, Clopton kept a toolbox of black-and-gold equipment in a clear bag slung over her left shoulder. You wouldnt understand it, but she was smiling ear to ear, a fabric facemask exposing just includes north of her nose.
Its practically hard to think that less than a month ago, the 47-year old lay in a hospital bed in Brookhaven, Mississippi, needing an oxygen maker to breathe, her body hurting, her mind in whats called “COVID fog,” and her only outlet to the outdoors world FaceTime discussions with her son and spouse.
April defended her life. And she won, now smiling and happy, quite actually breathing much simpler than she was during those 5 days at Kings Daughters Medical Center, about an hour south of Jackson. In her very first public appearance because what amounted to a six-week fight with COVID-19, April is returning to society in the very best way a Southern momma could.
” My baby is playing football,” she states of her 6-foot-2, 285-pound boy Trace, a two-year starter at center for Southern Miss. “It doesnt matter whats going on, Im not missing that.”
The Cloptons, April and other half Tommy, were witness to the very first video game between 2 FBS teams of what is sure to be a remarkable, all-together-weird and historic 2020 college football season. They saw their childs USM group, a two-touchdown preferred, dig itself a big hole and never ever rather crawl out– a 32-21 loss to South Alabama in an environment at M.M. Roberts Stadium that seemed like a tame SEC spring game.
No marching bands or gathering. No hugging or high-fiving. But there was football! Maybe not really pretty football, but it was football. There were signs of battle early on. As Southern Miss gamers raced onto the field in between pyrotechnics, the programs costumed mascot, an Eagle called Seymour, blazed a trail while holding a huge USM flag– until he tripped around midfield, toppling to the grass.
Cam Bonelli/Hattiesburg American-Imagn Content Services, LLC
On the 3rd play of the video game, South Alabama receiver Jalen Tolbert took a brief pass 73 backyards for a touchdown, slipping through at least three Southern Miss defenders– the start of a fiery very first quarter for the Jaguars. A 13-point favorite, Southern Miss discovered itself down 13-0 in the first 12 minutes of the video game, triggering aggravation from the stands.
Ah, yes, college football is back.
On the field, there were shanked punts, duck-like deep passes and officiating misfires. Quibbling about the efficiency value of sports amidst a pandemic appears frivolous.
Here in this hulking stack of concrete (not surprising that locals refer to it as The Rock), everybody appeared quite pleased with any live college sports action at all– the first of its kind between two clubs on the NCAAs highest level considering that the last conference basketball competition was stopped back on March 12. The time duration in between those events?
– Nearly six months
– 252,440 minutes
– 4,207 hours
– 25 weeks
– 175 days
– 15,146,400 seconds
In short, just be pleased. 53 of the 130 FBS programs have actually currently scratched fall ball.
” Its been all over the place mentally,” states Southern Miss athletic director Jeremy McClain. “The thing thats been so hard over the summer has been Can we get here?”.
The short answer is yes. Despite the fact that it looked actually weird. Southern Miss sold sufficient tickets so as not to exceed the Mississippi governors capacity optimum of 25% of a stadium. In The Rock, thats about 9,500 tickets, much of them either gamer or coach families and longtime season ticket holders as well as– gulp– 1,000 students (school authorities may reconsider the latter at some time). Tickets designated a section, but not a seat. Those not part of the very same family were required to area six feet apart in their section with ushers keeping an eye on the policy. Masks might just be eliminated when seated, and a lot of folks made the most of that, tearing them away to ingest the hot, damp night air.
Web Cam Bonelli/Hattiesburg American-Imagn Content Services, LLC.
Hand sterilizing stations dotted the concourse, concessions went cashless and on the sideline, team boxes were extended a few backyards so players might socially distance.
” Were on nationwide television, in front of everyone,” says McClain, himself a native Mississippian. “We want people to view us as trying to do it the proper way and be the example of You can do this. You can have fans in the arena. You can play college football and remain safe.”.
Who would have thunk it? Southern Miss vs. South Alabama amassing the nationwide spotlight. Since of press box seating adjustments, the school had to really reverse some media demands, McClain states, for a game in between Conference USA and the Sun Belt. Yes, 2020 continues to be the most strange year in recent history.
Strange isnt truly the word the Cloptons would utilize to explain this summertime. Uncomfortable.
Tommy Clopton, a high school principal, and April, a school librarian, both contracted the infection at some time in late July. Their initial COVID-19 test returned unfavorable. Relief turned to despair rapidly when, a couple of days later, the signs showed up.
Tommy and April Clopton.
The Cloptons are healthy individuals without any underlying conditions, the perfect candidates to be asymptomatic providers. Yet, Tommy and April fought some of the worst that COVID-19 has to offer. Body aches serious enough to wake you in the night. Fever-induced chills. A cloudy mind from COVID fog. And the worst of them all, tiredness and shortness of breath from the most very little of activity. “We would get winded from simply talking too much,” Tommy says.
On Aug. 4, nearly 2 weeks into quarantine, Aprils oxygen levels dipped to harmful adequate levels that a trip to the emergency situation room was in store. “He was psychological,” says April.
FaceTime was all they had. FaceTime and Sonic. One day with his mother on oxygen in the ER, Trace left school, drove the 90 minutes home to Brookhaven, swung through a Sonic and reached the hospital. Nurses took it from there, providing the meal to April.
COVID hit the Southern Miss offensive line hard early throughout camp. At least 2 linemen missed time and both lost at least 10 pounds. Thankfully, Trace never got it.
Those five days that April was hospitalized were the worst. It didnt assist that 2 more Clopton household members were combating the infection too. To interact with his better half, Tommy FaceTimed her from his Tahoe in the health center parking lot. Why? “Just to be close,” he says. “Shes whatever. I just needed to be close.”.
Tommy only felt totally recovered last week and its taken April an extra week to feel Okay. “The toughest thing is its just unrelenting,” states Tommy, a long time high school coach in the state who two years got out of coaching to take a trip to enjoy Trace play. “Typically you get the flu and within two to 3 days, you are going to be OK.
Thats all behind them now, though. Theyve got normalcy back in their lives. In the Deep South, thats called football.
The couple stepped into M.M. Roberts Stadium on Thursday about an hour before kickoff, hand in hand, mask to mask. They have a new outlook on COVID-19, a different viewpoint having battled a disease thats killed more than 180,000 people in America. But football is football and family is family. And possibly they feel a touch of invincibility. After all, the antibodies must course through their veins for a minimum of another two months, doctors state.
” We thought of getting badges to wear to the game,” Tommy laughs gesturing to his chest, “that state, Weve had it!”.
