Fall sports changed dramatically — perhaps not surprisingly — in the past week, with college leagues modifying and even canceling their seasons.

It prompts the question: Should we have a fall high school season in Connecticut?

My answer: no.

But I still believe there's a chance to play an entire high school season beginning in 2021.

This is based on conversations with athletic directors and other school officials, who have shared some brainstorming. It also assumes that by the start of next year, we'll have more peace of mind about COVID-19 in the form of a treatment/vaccine.

The suggestion I believe makes the most sense:

No sports this fall, but play a modified version of all three seasons in 2021. Winter sports in January and February; fall sports in March and April; spring sports in May and June. It would require ingenuity, such as perhaps shorter regular season schedules and skipping league tournaments, so as to complete the state tournaments within timely parameters. A 12-game basketball regular season is better than a zero-game season.

The details are fluid. But the concept is solid. It buys us more time to plan, pray for a treatment/vaccine and mostly, ensures safety for a little while longer.

The Ivy League and New England Small College Athletic Conference arrived at the realization that few other endeavors run afoul of social distancing more than sports. Think about it: Sports are about physical contact in small confines and bringing people together to watch in small confines. It's exactly what we need to avoid.

I get that kids want to play. Parents want to watch. (Media types want to get back to work.) But this plan of beginning in 2021 does suggest all the kids will get to play. It may not look like a typical season — football in April — but it's better than the alternative.

Is this a hard sell? Probably. We may have a skewed reality in Connecticut about COVID-19 because we've done an exemplary job keeping the virus to a duller roar. But look at what laissez faire social distancing has done in other parts of the country. Is it possible that if we let sports return too fast the virus spreads quickly?

I don't know the answer to that. Neither does anybody else. The question becomes about whether the risk is worth taking. Remember, too: This is no time for rhetorical bluster. Unless you have an "MD" at the end of your name, your opinion is irrelevant.

The vagaries of COVID-19 have been quite the education. A few months ago, many of us hammered the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference for pulling the plug on the winter season too quickly. Now here we are advocating for more patience and prudence. Pretty good microcosm of life in general: Either adapt to new information and changing circumstances or stay knee deep in the morass of stubbornness and ignorance.

This, too: Whatever happens this fall will require some shared sacrifice. Things aren't going to be as we knew them. Maybe not for a while. So while local and state officials negotiate zillions of details, this is a good time for all of us to stock up on the green can (decaf) and appreciate whatever sports we get.

Local and state officials have other potential ideas, too, not the least of which is playing the most social distance-friendly sports (golf, tennis, baseball, softball, track) in the fall. It would be very close to switching the spring and fall seasons. Again: It's brainstorming. Nothing has been decided.

But then, look south to New Jersey, another state that has contained COVID-19 well. Its version of the CIAC just moved the football season back to Oct. 2.

Many more questions than answers. But until we get some peace of mind, I say we keep sports quiet.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro