Kane Brown struck mainstream success back in 2018 thanks to his Experiment, a project that saw the country singer land his first No. 1 album on the Billboard albums chart. The album helped him earn an American Music Award for Favorite Country Male Artist in 2019 and other nominations across a various other of award shows. Extending his association with award shoes, Kane Brown brings his talents to the 2020 Billboard Award show to perform “Be Like That” with Swae Lee and Khalid. The track is a laid-back effort that finds the three artists accepting the realities of life, an attitude that is reflected in their performance as they calmly move across the empty theater’s stage to deliver each of their verses.
The “Be Like That” track, which was released back in July, arrived as Kane Brown continued work on his upcoming third EP, one that would follow 2015’s Closer and 2016’s Chapter 1. While news of a forthcoming EP may be exciting to fans, Brown did not share a release date for the project, saying in an interview with Taste Of Country that there is no timetable for its release. However, at the time of the interview, he did confirm that the EP is nearly complete.
As for Swae Lee and Khalid, both artists are expected to release projects of their own as Swae Lee has teased his upcoming album with singles like “Dance Like No One’s Watching” and “Reality Check.” On the other hand, Khalid has left optimistic thanks to singles like “Eleven” and “Know Your Worth.”
Check out the performance of “Be Like That” above.
After just two seasons, Brian Agler is out as head coach of the Dallas Wings, the team announced Wednesday. The two agreed to “mutually part ways” following a promising 2020 campaign that saw the Wings fall one game short of advancing to the WNBA playoffs.
“As we look to the future, we believe our team is talented and well-positioned for success,” Dallas Wings President and CEO Greg Bibb said in a release. “After discussions with Brian, we have elected to go in different directions. We are thankful for Brian’s work, dedication to the community and his belief in our dynamic team. We wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors.”
𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 | The Dallas Wings and Brian Agler have mutually agreed to part ways.
In his two seasons at the helm, Agler’s Wings finished with an overall record of 18-38 and failed to make the postseason both times. Prior to joining the Dallas organization ahead of the 2019 season, Agler served as head coach of the Minnesota Lynx (1999-2002), Seattle Storm (2008-2014) and Los Angeles Sparks (2015-2018), winning titles with Seattle and LA.
“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to coach the Dallas Wings, I have great respect for the organization” Agler said in the team statement. “I wish everyone within the Wings organization the best of luck in the future.”
While the Wings went 8-14 this season, there were plenty of reasons to be excited. Dallas was in the middle of its current rebuild and had just drafted Oregon’s Satou Sabally with the second overall pick to play alongside fellow first round draft picks Bella Alarie and Ty Harris. Sabally threw her name into the ring for Rookie of the Year contention, averaging 13.9 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game despite missing six games due to injury.
Rising star Arike Ogunbowale took a large leap forward in Bradenton, Florida, averaging a league-high 22.8 points on 41% shooting, 3.5 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game. In doing so, she also earned the 2020 WNBA Peak Performer Award for scoring after posting the highest scoring average by a second-year player in league history. And the former Notre Dame hero had 37 straight games in double-figures scoring in 2020, good for the second-longest double-digit streak in franchise history.
“We believe our team’s youth, tenacity and talent provide us with the competitive edge to attract the right fit for our club and someone who will lead our continued growth as we pursue a WNBA Championship,” Bibb said about the quest for Agler’s replacement.
Bringing added attention to her newly released track “Courage To Change,” Sia brings her new single to the 2020 Billboard Music Award stage with an uplifting performance of the track. Donning her trademark hidden look, she delivered her first performance of the track in a fluffy white dress backed by neon lighting and the space of an empty theater. Sia has slowly ramped up her activity in 2020, a year that started for her with a string of loose singles. Continuing its promotion, she released her single ahead of the film project Music, which fans can expect to receive soon.
The track is just one of a few releases Sia has shared throughout the year. She started things off by premiering her “Saved My Life” single during May’s Americares’ COVID Is No Joke livestream fundraiser. She then followed up the performance with a performance of “Together” for the first on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Sia later joined David Guetta for their “https://uproxx.com/pop/david-guetta-sia-lets-love-video/Let’s Love” single, one that added to the long list of the duo’s collaborations over the years.
As for Sia’s Music film, fans can expect to get the project in the near future. The project will feature appearances from Kate Hudson, Leslie Odom, Jr., as well her dancing collaborator Maddie Ziegler.
You can watch her Billboard Music Award performance in the video above.
Young Nudy’s hot streak continues as the Atlanta native returns with his new song “Never.” The new single is a straight-forward effort that finds him discussing the dos and don’ts in his life. Throughout he lays down the law with sinister lines like, “I ain’t never goin’ broke for no ho, never / Forever, I’ma be rich, n****, forever, forever / You play with me, you dyin’, n****, whatever.”
Young Nudy’s DJ and engineer, Bradley “DJ BJ” Whitaker, previously spoke with Revolt about his upcoming project, Nudy Land 2, and how the coronavirus pandemic affected it. “He likes recording in different places, so we’ll probably take a couple of trips to different cities. It might be a month process, it might be a year process,” BJ said. “The process in our head was always to get [Anyways] out at the beginning of the year, go on tour, and after the tour, lock in until Nudy Land 2 is done. Coronavirus sort of f*cked everything up.”
The Atlanta native’s new track arrives after he shared a laid-back video for his track “All White” last month, which saw him enjoying some time with the homies, including his cousin 21 Savage, at a backyard kickback. Nudy also joined Deanté Hitchcock in a black-and-white video for their collaboration “Attitude.”
What makes a beer the best beer in America? The answer to that really depends on who you’re asking. For us, it’s a complex matrix of drinkability, accessibility, affordability, and uniqueness. But hitting all those marks at once is hard. And frankly, it doesn’t matter quite as much how good a beer is if we can’t find it or afford it.
That’s why we find this list from Ranker to be legitimately interesting. With the exception of Alaskan Amber — which is hard to find east of the Mississippi — you can actually try all of these beers right now. And though the masses aren’t always spot-on (the Big Bang Theory corollary), the beers below are all affordable, very drinkable, accessible, and pretty damn unique. Even the old microbrews from the 1980s on this list still have something to add to the conversation.
The ten beers below are the result of thousands of votes cast by beer drinkers. Granted, there are undoubtedly better beers in many corners of the country (there are over 8,000 active breweries in the U.S.). But these beers are a good start for anyone looking to change up their macro-beer routine.
Style: English Pale Ale ABV: 5.4% Average Price:$10, 6-pack
The Beer:
This throwback recipe harnesses the ingenuity of America’s biggest craft brewer and melds it with English brewing. The beer has a solid malt base that’s amped up with English East Kent Goldings and Fuggles hops. The brew is then aged in cool temperatures to really smooth out the flavor notes.
Tasting Notes:
This is a pretty solid autumn beer in our estimation. The mild malt provides a base for spicy and earthy hoppiness. The bitterness is drawn waaaaay back and allows for the caramel aspects of the malt to peek in through the well-rounded body of the beer.
9. The Alchemist Heady Topper
The Alchemist
Style: New England IPA ABV: 8% Average Price:$18.99, 4-pack
The Beer:
This is one of the signature beers of the NEIPA hop-bomb movement. It’s been hyped by the highest echelons of the craft beer world.
Does it live up to that hype? No. Nothing can.
This is just a damn-fine beer that’s delicious to drink… if you love heavy doses of dank hops.
Tasting Notes:
This sipper opens with a rush of dank resinous notes with a grassy and floral nature. The taste delivers on those notes with an almost hash oil dankness next to a dry fizzy nature and the distant echo of what were once malts. While this is classified as a NEIPA, it’s not juicy really. It’s way more like a classic West Coast IPA these days, with thorough pine resin and cannabis floral dankness running from beginning to end.
8. North Coast Brewing Co. Old Rasputin
North Coast Brewing
Style: Russian Imperial Stout ABV: 9% Average Price:$10.99, 4-pack
The Beer:
This is a classic beer all-around and the most expensive on the list (but only slightly more expensive than the others). It’s been winning awards for decades. It’s also the perfect rainy day accompaniment for this time of year. The hefty ABVs help to take the edge off as well. You can’t go wrong with a bottle or two of this dark stuff.
Tasting Notes:
Deeply roasted cacao nibs meet chocolate malts with a fatty nutty edge. A bit of whiskey vanilla and barrel must arrive on the palate with a sense of spice and more of those chocolatey malts. The bitterness of the dark chocolate moves towards a subtle pine resin dankness at the end.
7. Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Style: American IPA ABV: 7.2% Average Price:$10.49, 6-pack
The Beer:
This is a quintessential West Coast IPA. The hops are on full display in this beer. But it’s still Sierra Nevada and they know how to balance a beer perfectly between its malty base and hoppy body.
Tasting Notes:
Bright hops greet you with a lean in from mild pine heading toward lemon citrus. That citrus carries through on the palate as a hint of juicy fruit arrives in the background along with a caramel malt backbone. The bright, floral, piney, and juicy hop nature never overpowers as the dry end of this beer arrives and refreshes you to your core.
6. Arrogant Bastard Ale
Arroganta Bastard
Style: American Strong Ale ABV: 7.2% Average Price:$12.99, 6-pack
The Beer:
Arrogant Bastard from Stone Brewing out in San Diego was a powerhouse in the late 1990s. The beer still satisfies as a reminder to headier times when big, bold hoppy notes were considered “outsider” on the national stage (not that other microbrewers weren’t doing that already for a while).
Tasting Notes:
There’s a sweet maltiness that’s overcome by grassy hops. The dankness is apparent and marries the almost nutty sweetness of the malty underbelly. The sip meanders through citrus, more grassy notes, almost toffee-like maltiness, with a flutter of spice by the end.
5. Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA
Dogfish Head Brewing
Style: Imperial IPA ABV: 9% Average Price:$15.29, 6-pack
The Beer:
This beer’s brewing process makes it unique. The brewers continuously add hops for 90 minutes during the brew to layer in a serious amount of hoppy depth. The keyword there is “layer.” While a lot of hops are used in this process, it doesn’t overpower the malty base of the beer and creates a textured experience in the beer’s body.
Tasting Notes:
The bready and caramel malts come through in tandem with the equal parts piney and citrusy hops. The taste delivers on those promises with the addition of Christmas cakes full of candied fruit, rum, and spices. The bitterness is dialed in with a nice cut of citrus that mellows the whole sip out.
4. Anchor Steam
Anchor Steam
Style: California Common ABV: 4.9% Average Price:$10.99, 6-pack
The Beer:
Anchor Steam is one of the most unique beers on this list. The brew is a hybrid of lager and ale. The beer is made with cold lager yeasts that are fermented with malts at warm ale-like temperatures. It’s made in shallow, open-topped fermenters, which allows the yeast to work faster and the mix to cool more quickly.
Tasting Notes:
The beer presents you with a nose full of roasted and slightly caramel malts with a bready nature next to a wisp of floral hops. The palate carries on with the malts edging towards a toffee sweetness as the hops linger in the background with a slight pine bitterness.
The sip ends dry, full-bodied, and crisp.
3. Alaskan Amber
Alaskan
Style: Altbier ABV: 5.3% Average Price:$9.46, 6-pack
The Beer:
This easy-drinking Altbier — an old German brown ale from the Düsseldorf area — is another perfect rainy day beer to have a six-pack of in the fridge. The beer is all about the malt that’s slow-fermented at cooler temperatures (compared to most ales, that is). All of that makes for a quaffable ale worth trying the next time you’re west of the Mississippi.
Tasting Notes:
Does the Alaskan glacial water come out in the body of this beer? We’d like to think so. The brew really revels in the caramel roasted malts on the nose and in the taste. The hoppiness is there, but more of a floral and resiny accent than the main attraction.
The sip is light-hearted, full-spirited, and damn f*cking tasty.
2. New Belgium Fat Tire
New Belgium
Style: American Red Ale ABV: 5.2% Average Price:$10.49, 6-pack
The Beer:
This amber ale put New Belgium on the craft beer map back in the day. The brew utilizes Pale, C-80, Munich, and Victory alongside Willamette, Goldings, and Nugget hops that are balanced just right. This Colorado brew is an easy-drinking beer that’s also really easy to find these days. Those are wins.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a buttered and honey-dripping biscuit maltiness up top with a note of green apple tartness and grassy hops. Those sweetened malts are what shine the brightest on the tongue as the hops pop in with floral bitterness.
The sip’s dry fizziness keeps things squarely in the “refreshing” category while still feeling bold.
1. Samuel Adams Boston Lager
Samuel Adams
Style: Vienna Lager ABV: 5% Average Price:$17.69, 12-pack
The Beer:
This really is the grand-parent of most craft beer these days. The lager launched back in 1984 and has become the cornerstone of both craft brewing, corner liquor stores, and airport bars worldwide. The actual beer marries American malts with German hops, specifically grown in Bavaria for Samuel Adams.
Tasting Notes:
Caramel malts greet you with a whisper of those floral Bavarian hops. The sweet malts mingle with a bit of grain and citrus as the hops ebb and flow in the background. The end is dry and refreshing with the caramel malts taking back center stage.
Part of the problem with debating abortion legislation is that there is no clear definition of what it even is. Some might say it’s the termination of an unwanted pregnancy, but sometimes a pregnancy that ends in abortion was very much wanted. Some might say it’s the killing of a baby in the womb, but plenty of abortions take place after a baby has already died in utero.
Merriam-Webster defines abortion as “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus”—a definition that points to the following heartbreaking story and the reason why abortion is not as cut and dry an issue as many make it out to be.
Haylie Grammer shared her family’s experience with “late-term abortion” in the death of her daughter, Embree, at 25 weeks, and it illustrates how abortion can look very, very different than what people imagine it to be.
Grammer wrote:
“I saw this article today about Senator Gary Peters and his abortion story. It reminded me why I am pro-choice and reminded me that people need to hear my story too. Some of you may have already heard my story, but I think it is a good reminder of how politics are used to control women’s bodies and how everything isn’t always what it seems on the surface.
4.5 years ago, I gave birth to my first born. Her name was Embree Eleanor Grammer. She was born via c-section on April 25, 2016. She weighed 4lbs 4oz. She was only 25 weeks gestation. She lived for approximately 20-30 minutes. She was born with a tumor that was roughly the size of a volleyball that was invading her body both externally and internally. It was sucking her blood supply, pushing her organs out of place, deforming her body, and overworking her heart. We found out about the tumor only 5 weeks prior. In that 5 weeks the tumor grew from about the size of a walnut to the volleyball. I grew along with it, from the tiny bump of a first time mom at 20 weeks to measuring the same as a pregnant woman who was roughly 36 weeks along. In 5 weeks.
That 5 weeks was the hardest 5 weeks of my life. We had sonograms twice weekly, traveled across the state to visit more specialists, and were told that essentially our sweet Embree would probably not make it. We had a choice to make. The state of Texas allows an abortion a time period after 20 weeks if the pregnancy is life threatening to the mother or if the fetus has “abnormalities.” We qualified for this. I have always been pro-choice, but I have never been pro-abortion for myself. While I agree that women have the right to do what is best for them, I myself wasn’t ever planning on getting an abortion. I also had hope. Hope that Embree would be healed. Hope that the tumor would stop growing. So we chose to push on with the pregnancy, hoping that Embree would have a chance. I was counting down to the age of viability, just hoping that if I could keep Embree cooking until then, maybe…. just maybe, modern medicine and prayers could keep her alive.
We were not only closely monitoring Embree, but doctors were closely monitoring me. Even though Embree was still alive, she was not in good shape. She was developing Hydrops and I was at a risk of developing mirror syndrome. This would be life threatening to me if it fully developed. On April 22 I went to my second sonogram of the week and my doctors were concerned with the swelling in my feet. I was told that I had a decision to make. Not only was I starting to develop the beginnings of mirror syndrome, but we were 2 weeks away from 27 weeks. This was important because at 27 weeks, I would no longer be able to deliver Embree in Texas via c-section. Why? Because according to the law, by choosing to deliver Embree this early, I would be having an abortion. And while at 24.5 weeks I was still in the grey area of Texas Abortion law where I could deliver her, at 27 weeks I would not be. Surprised this is considered an abortion? Many are. Stay with me.
We decided to schedule our c-section for that Monday. I would be 25 weeks. We made it past the age of viability, but it was becoming obvious that she would not make it. We met with NICU doctors and they reviewed our case. They decided that they would not be attempting any life saving attempts on Embree after she was delivered. This meant officially, we were choosing to have an abortion. We were giving birth to our child early, knowing full well that she would not survive. This is what ‘late term abortion’ looks like. Catch that political buzz word? I will explain more below.
As you can imagine, this was the worst and longest weekend of our life. We knew that in 2 days we would be meeting our daughter and letting her go. But it gets so much worse. Again, this is considered an abortion. A late term abortion. The State of Texas, like most states who have a large majority who claim to be ‘pro-life,’ has many restrictions in place to prevent abortions from happening. Here is the thing about abortion legislation…. it doesn’t differentiate between what we were going through and what the ‘pro-life’ groups think they are preventing. The laws in Texas stated that in order for us to give birth to Embree and have a chance to hold her while her soul still resided in her body, we had to do the following: 1. Our doctor had to apply for permission to perform the c-section from the state. This had to be done 24 hours before the surgery. We had to go to the hospital on the Saturday before we were to give birth, in the midst of our mourning, to sign a paper requesting an abortion. Put yourself in that situation. Forever, in the records of the State of Texas, there is a piece of paper that says that I aborted my precious Embree. 2. On top of filing this paperwork for us, our doctor also had to give me a pamphlet published by the State of Texas about the consequences of abortion. By law, she was required to give me a booklet that told me that if I had the abortion I would suffer from depression and anxiety for the rest of my life, have an increased risk of breast cancer, and possible be infertile in the future. Think I’m kidding? Have a look: https://hhs.texas.gov/…/women…/womans-right-to-know.pdf
If you consider yourself “pro-life” you are probably thinking something like, “yes but your situation was different. This isn’t what I’m fighting against.” Or maybe you’re thinking “but I don’t consider this abortion.” Great. But the actual definition of abortion is “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus.” So while YOU might not consider what we went through to be an “abortion,” it was. I had an abortion. I had a late-term abortion.
Why am I bringing this up? Why am I telling you this? Because when lawmakers and people fight to end ‘abortion,’ they are talking about this too. When you hear about ‘late term abortions’ taking place, THIS is what is happening. It’s not women who have carried babies to full term and then just deciding to have an abortion. It is women and families who are devastated that they are in a situation in which they have to decide whether to let a child suffer in the womb, or end their suffering. ‘Pro-life’ laws are designed to make this process difficult. They are designed to put obstacles in place. This process is already difficult enough. Even women who are deciding to have an abortion at 8 weeks. It’s already a hard decision so why are we allowing people to torture them too. Every time people talk about saving the babies and being pro-life, I cringe on the inside. Not because I don’t want to save babies, but because I want to save babies. Save babies from suffering that they are made to endure because some man who has no medical training has decided that he knows women’s bodies better than doctors. I cringe because I know as a survivor of these terrible ‘pro-life’ laws that these laws are being used to trick women in America to vote against their own interest in hopes that they are saving the unborn. I cringe every time I hear people call those who vote in favor of Pro-Choice laws… ‘murderers,’ because they are saying I murdered my Embree.
I chose to deliver Embree on April 25, 2016 via c-section. I chose late-term abortion. I did so because it was the only way I could hold my baby girl while she was still alive. It was the only way I could encounter her soul until we are together again in heaven. This is why I am Pro-choice. Remember Embree and I when you vote.“
If your first response to this story is, “But that’s not abortion!” you’re not just incorrect, you’ve also missed the point. Due to the circumstances and the laws of the state she was in, yes, this was legally considered an abortion. And if you think it shouldn’t be, who do you think should make that decision? Who gets to define abortion so that it accounts for the millions of different individual circumstances that come into play? Most of us don’t even want the government deciding which doctors we can go to—do we really want elected officials with no medical training making decisions about our specific, personal medical care?
Some might say that these stories and experiences are not the norm, but they actually are when it comes to late-term abortion. Third trimester abortions are medical choices that aren’t easy for any individual or family, and they are situations that medical professionals and patients need to make together, not the government. Pete Buttigieg said it beautifully: “The bottom line is, as horrible as that choice is, that woman, that family may seek spiritual guidance, they may seek medical guidance, but that decision is not going to be made any better, medically or morally, because the government is dictating how that decision should be made.”
The Atlanta Braves took a 2-0 series lead in the NLCS on Tuesday night in an 8-7 win that got an awful lot more interesting than it likely should’ve been in the bottom of the ninth inning, as the Dodgers bats woke up suddenly.
On Wednesday, they stayed awake in a big way as the Dodgers racked up a record-setting 11 runs in the first inning to effectively leave no doubt about this series going to Thursday at 2-1.
Corey Seager had his first of two RBI hits in the inning as the second batter, driving Mookie Betts in with a double to the left-center gap.
Two batters later, with two on and one out, Joc Pederson hit a three-run shot that was followed on the next pitch by an Edwin Rios bomb to dead center field.
Seager would return to the plate and drive in another run with a single to center, as the Dodgers ran Braves starter Kyle Wright after just two-thirds of an inning.
The Braves bullpen offering didn’t fare much better, hitting the first batter they faced — albeit, under some dubious circumstances — and then allowing Max Muncy to hit an absolute moon shot to right center for a grand slam.
In all, the Dodgers racked up 11 runs on seven hits in the first inning, setting a new MLB playoff record for runs scored in any inning by one team — breaking the record set by the St. Louis Cardinals one year ago against, yes, the Atlanta Braves. At least this time the Braves did this in Game 3 while up 2-0 in the series, rather than it being in an elimination game, but still, it’s rather incredible that one team has been on the wrong end of the two worst single-inning pitching performances in postseason history in back-to-back years.
The trend nowadays isn’t to remake movies as other movies. It’s to remake them as TV series. The same day it was revealed Grease is getting a prequel show, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Amazon was digging up IP that’s not even a quarter century old yet, reviving the 1997 slasher I Know What You Did Last Summer, but this time for television. (Of course, someone already tried to remake this one before, without much luck.)
The original film, which was based on a 1973 YA novel, concerns a group of teens who accidentally hit a pedestrian with their car then cover up the murder. The next year they find themselves suddenly stalked by a mysterious, hook-wielding killer, seemingly hell-bent on revenge. The movie rode the waves of the late ‘90s trend of post-modern horror, with self-aware teens often joking about the genre’s tropes and clichés. On top of creating Dawson’s Creek, Summer’s screenwriter, Kevin Williamson, also wrote the one that started them all, 1996’s Scream.
Starring Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, and Freddie Prinze Jr., I Know What You Did Last Summer was a massive hit, but it was one of the last of its kind. Even though the Scream sequels continued to rake in cash, its own sequel, the amusingly titled I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, did not. But given that Scream itself is getting a fivequel, maybe that brand of horror will live again.
The SEC is currently dealing with a number of COVID-19 outbreaks that have impacted scheduling for this weekend, most notably with Vanderbilt and Florida having to postpone their games this Saturday with Missouri and LSU respectively due to a number of positive tests.
Ole Miss is likewise dealing with players testing positive, as their game with Arkansas is still on for now but more positive tests later in the week could change that. The biggest game of the week in the conference is a showdown between the No. 2 and No. 3 ranked teams in the country in Alabama and Georgia in Tuscaloosa. On Wednesday, that game got a major shakeup in the form of positive tests for Alabama head coach Nick Saban and athletic director Greg Byrne, which will keep Saban off of the sidelines and thrust offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian into head coaching duties, with both Saban and Byrne releasing statements.
BREAKING: Nick Saban and Alabama AD Greg Byrne have tested positive for COVID-19.
Saban: “I immediately left work and isolated at home. At this time, I do not have any symptoms relative to COVID, and I have taken another PCR test to confirm my diagnosis.”
Per the statement, there are no other positive tests at this time for the team, but obviously testing later in the week will be important to monitor as Saban has removed himself from on-site team activities and is at home. The primary concern is the health of Saban and Byrne, as the Alabama coach is 68 years old. Hopefully he remains asymptomatic and is able to make a speedy recovery, but Alabama is learning what so many other schools have, which is that it’s impossible to fully insulate a team from the possibility of positive tests while traveling for games and being on campus.
The SEC isn’t alone in having games postponed, but right now they have been hit the hardest and now one of the all-time luminaries of the sport is impacted directly.
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended education in every way imaginable. While it’s great that modern technology allows us to attend classes through Zoom or Google Meets, it’s just not the same as in-person interaction.
It’s also tough to recreate the camaraderie that can develop in a classroom.
The impenetrable distance that exists between teachers and students in the COVID-19 era was bridged recently when a group of students came together to tell their professor how much he really means to them.
Professor David Branscome at Florida State University has become accustomed to teaching to a mostly blank screen these days. Even though there are 180 people in his mythology class, only a few opt to attend the lecture with their screens and microphones turned on.
At the end of his lectures he will usually say “have a great weekend” and his students will reply with the customary, “you, too.” But this time, one student replied with “I love you.” To which Branscome replied, “I love you, too.”
After that lecture, a group of students got together on a the texting platform GroupMe and put together a plan to bombard their professor with an “I love you” at the end of the next lecture.
A few days later, at the end of class, one by one, the students showed their love by saying, “I love you,” to which Branscome replied: “I love you, too,” or “I love you all.”
The video of the lovely send off was captured on TikTok where it’s received over 600,000 likes.
Darline Philius, a sophomore in the class, says that the chain was a way of bringing the class together while they’re apart. “We’re not able to be with each other, in person,” the 20-year-old told Insider. “So this is our type of bonding.”
But it was also a way to show their deep feelings for the professor. “We really do love this man,” Philius said.
Branscome has found a positive way to see the to the recent disruption to the educational system.
“I’ve actually been very pleasantly surprised with the environment,” he said. “In some ways, it contributes to class discussion. Every student has a front-row seat.”
He also believes that the fact that the pandemic has created a unique bond between people.
“I think that this is one of the nice things about the online environment, strangely being apart brings us closer together — at least in this environment,” he said.
Branscome believes that the “I love you” chain was a way for him to express his true feelings about his students.
“I do care about each and every one of them,” the professor said.
The wonderful bond created between Professor Branscome and his students is a great example of how living through tough times encourages people to focus on what really matters in life. It also provides a bit of hope that, one day when this is all over, we can all say that living though the pandemic made us more gracious people.
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(@ChrisVannini) 
