From the Bench: BHS Alum Winkie's Harvard Football Season Derailed as More Pressing Matters Await
By Jeff Toquinto on July 19, 2020 from Sports Blog
He will not be the last Bridgeport High School alum that will be facing disappointment on the collegiate football front because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He is, however, the one who has the distinction of being the first.
On July 8, prior to news breaking nationally, Carson Winkie’s found out the hard work that put him in a spot where he would be part of the Harvard football roster this coming fall wasn’t going to produce the dividend he expected. Instead, the news that greeted him was 
devastating even though he knew it was a possibility.
devastating even though he knew it was a possibility.
It was on that date the Ivy League, of which Harvard is a member, announced football and all fall sports were being canceled as the result of COVID-19. It was, he said, tough to watch.
“They actually released it to us about an hour and a half before it was on the news. They had a meeting with our athletic director through a Zoom (video conference) call and the whole thing was unfortunate,” said Winkie. “It was tough.”
The fallback is that Winkie is still going to be attending Harvard. Even though the manner and the time for that, now, is up in the air. We will get to that very interesting scenario shortly.
Being at Harvard for academics is not something terribly unusual for anyone following Winkie’s academic career. He comes from a family where academic success is the norm at the highest levels. He also comes from a family where athletic success has been witnessed as well.
While the academic family success has always been of Ivy League quality, the athletic success never reached Division I consideration. That changed with Winkie, who somehow managed to balance a grueling academic workload and community service projects and find time to become, well, a beast on the football field.
This past offseason he opted to get better. He figured if he were better, then the team would be better, even though he was coming off as season in which he led the team in tackles.
So, he worked. And he worked more. The result was a 220-pound linebacker, running back who dominated on defense and then become completely unstoppable plowing ahead in the backfield for the Indians on their march to the school’s 10th state football championship.
Along the way, the offers came – plenty of them of the smaller school variety. There was also a nomination to the United States Naval Academy before he was accepted into Harvard.
Harvard, however, was interested in him playing football. Navy would be a walk-on situation with no guarantee he’d ever lace up a pair of cleats and Winkie had come to love the game he had worked so hard at to be able to help lead his team to a championship.
Eventually, he spurned the Naval Academy and their tradition. For the Harvard crimson and a tradition of academic excellence and a 
chance to play football. That, chance, at least in year one, is over.
chance to play football. That, chance, at least in year one, is over.
“When I signed in February, it was right before everything hit, but there was no way I was thinking about this,” said Winkie. “It’s hard to see just how far it’s come because I was looking forward to that first year on campus and being a member of the football team. Now, it’s thrown away.”
Winkie, nor any other member of Harvard’s football team, had a say in the direction of the Ivy League’s decision. Winkie, however, will have a say on a couple of big decisions he needs to make this month.
“Harvard has it set that all classes this fall are going to be done remotely. The thing is that is if you are a freshman, you can be on campus,” said Winkie. “You still take classes remotely, but you can be on campus.”
If he goes, Winkie will have his own room. He will share a bathroom with one person.
“The rule is you have to stay within your dorm. I’m not sure how strict it is, but on paper you get test every three day for the coronavirus,” said Winkie. “There are no gatherings allowed.”
Winkie’s not sure if that is how he wants the beginning of college to go for him. In fact, he is not even sure he will be taking classes this 
fall. He is not dropping out or changing schools, but there is another option he must consider.
fall. He is not dropping out or changing schools, but there is another option he must consider.
“The Ivy League only allows eight semesters once you start for athletics. You can’t take a redshirt year,” said Winkie “I have to decide if I want to sit out the first semester to allow me to be able to play four years of football.
“I definitely don’t want to take a whole year off, but I also don’t like the idea of missing schooling,” he continued. “School has always come first, but I know how much I’d like to play.”
Now, the young man who thought deciding between Harvard and the Naval Academy would be the toughest college decision he has had to make has been given a new standard. He must decide if he is going to sit out a semester or attend and miss a year of football.
“This, I’d say, is harder. What makes it tough is I don’t think anyone thought they would have to make a decision like this,” said Winkie. “I’ve got my parents to help me through this, but it’s a lot to put on an 18-year-old.”
The decision? Yeah, it needs made by July 24. Not exactly a big window of time for Winkie and the rest of his teammates and members of 
the Ivy League.
the Ivy League.
“I really feel like the administration of the Ivy League could have done better. I understand the situation, and maybe there are revenue reasons involved, but I feel they could have done a better job with this and given the student-athletes more time,” he said.
While Winkie is waiting to decide, he is not waiting to stay in shape or learning about the program. Despite not being on campus, he is part of team meetings and position meetings where he meets with other linebackers – all via Zoom.
Winkie also deals with the strength coach who provides weekly programs that he does at Anytime Fitness here in Bridgeport. And it is paying off.
“I’m back at 225 and I’m hoping, whenever I get on campus, that I’ll be at 230 or 235. I think that is my ideal weight,” said Winkie. “The situation has given me more time to prepare, help me mature and control things I can control.
“I can’t control the decisions of when we’ll play again,” he continued. “I can control truing to get bigger, faster and stronger. When my opportunity arrives, I want to be sure I’ve done everything I can to take advantage of it.”
Here is hoping the opportunity arrives sooner rather than later. Not just for him and college football, but for everyone.
Editor's Note: Top photo shows Carson Winkie sporting a Harvard uniform, while he's shown with Harvard Coach Tim Murphy, left, and the coach that recruited Winkie, Keegan Kennedy. In the third photo, his shown with his parents in his new uniform. Bottom two photos, in order, show Winkie running for yardage against Keyser during the regular season and running over Bluefield players in the state title game. Bottom two photos by Ben Queen Photography.
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