Noah Fries | sports editor

Sport is inherently a war between two sides, both using tactics to battle for victory. It’s no secret why football has terms like “in the trenches” and “blitz,” according to Duquesne professor Robert Edward Healy III.

This is why people around the world are so enamoured with sport. We love watching two teams battle it out to see who had the better strategies and who deserved to win the war.

One of the classes I have this semester is Media and Sports with Professor Healy, who is the cofounder of the Sports Information and Media program that led me to Duquesne. It’s my last required class of the major, which is an unfathomable statement to put on paper — it feels like I just got to campus and my time is quickly coming to an end already.

While I’m only four class sessions into Media and Sports, Prof. Healy has explained a number of reasons why sport is so beloved around the world. There are, however, dangers to war and, thus, dangers to sport as a whole. Unfortunately, these dangers became all too real in the college football world recently.

Division II football player MicahJo Barnett of William Jewell College in Missouri passed away Aug. 29, experiencing a medical emergency just after scoring a touchdown against Fort Lewis College.

The cause of death has not yet been released. William Jewell College’s interim president Drew Van Horn told ESPN Sept. 1 that Barnett had no known underlying health conditions and was attended to immediately by medical professionals with automated external defibrillators (AEDs).

According to the Associated Press, Barnett scored a 1-yard touchdown run with 5:15 remaining in the first quarter. The game was then canceled with 4:32 left, with Barnett being pronounced dead at the hospital after efforts to resuscitate were unsuccessful.

“We are absolutely heartbroken over the tragic passing of MicahJo Barnett,” William Jewell College Vice President for Athletics Ryan Erlacher said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, friends and all that love him. MicahJo is an exceptional young man who made a tremendous impact on the Jewell and Liberty [Missouri] communities, and he will be greatly missed by all.

“Please keep his family in your prayers and we kindly ask for everyone to respect their privacy during this difficult time.”

This incident comes as a painful, heartbreaking reminder to sports fans around the globe that the game itself is not the most important thing on game day. The player’s health and safety needs to be at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

People love watching sports for its tenacity and rough plays. Hardest hit compilations are some of the most popular things to watch on social media — one of my favorite clips ever is when Sean Taylor lit up punter Brian Moorman in the 2007 Pro Bowl.

These hard hits, however, lead to some of the most hard-hitting shots on the emotions too. I (unfortunately) vividly remember the Monday Night Football game — right after ringing in the new year of 2023 — when Pittsburgh native Damar Hamlin got hit hard in the chest by Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins, sending Hamlin into cardiac arrest on the field.

I was sitting at my desk in the basement of my home doing homework for AP European History at the time. The game was on the TV while I was on my computer, and I remember being transfixed at the scene unfolding in front of me. I don’t think I took my eyes off my TV for the rest of the night as I was quickly overcome by emotion as news on Hamlin kept coming in.

Safe to say that my homework did not get done that night.

Hamlin died on the field that night and was brought back to life by the Buffalo Bills’ training staff through CPR. The pain of that day, however, was brought back when I got the notification a little over a week ago that a football player had died on the field and was unable to be brought back to life.

From a very young age, I have had an extremely deep passion for sports. Some of my fondest memories as a kid are watching sports, whether in person or on TV, with my dad and my grandfathers.

As I have gotten older, however, my eyes have been opened to the risk that these players take every time they step on the field, diamond or court. While these medical emergencies are less common, it feels like there is somebody new with a concussion, torn ACL or some other serious injury every time I open the ESPN app.

Sports are something that unite wide populations at any given moment. Just weeks after the 9/11 terrorist attacks — as we come up on the 25th anniversary this week — President George W. Bush threw out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium in a moment that seemed to unite the entire country after it had gone through something so terrible.

While sports are great for getting groups together — because who doesn’t love a good Super Bowl party — it’s important that we all take time to appreciate these athletes for sacrificing their bodies to provide entertainment for countless others around the world.

Barnett was doing something that he loved when he tragically lost his life. Hamlin was doing something that he loved when he lost his life before being miraculously brought back. Countless other players — Pittsburgh Steeler legend Ryan Shazier comes to mind right away — had their careers ended early due to debilitating injuries.

While I will be firmly sat in front of my TV as I watch the NFL season kick off this week, I’ll be taking an extra moment to remember those who can no longer play the game that they loved.

I hope that you — who must love sports as much as I do if you’re reading this — will do the same.

Editor’s Note: Prof. Healy serves as the adviser for The Duke.

Noah Fries can be reached at friesn@duq.edu