Maintaining identity during this time of chaos has been a challenge in itself.

“I definitely had to think about what I wanted to do next because with my whole situation, it would be easy to basically sacrifice my hope, but honestly, I was blessed to get more opportunities,” Woods said.

Since his departure from Washington, Woods has been elected to Vice President for the Advancement of Blacks in Sport, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect and inspire people to advocate for racial and social equality for Blacks in sports.

Being an active voice in the Advancement for Blacks in Sport herself, UGA women’s basketball coach Joni Taylor said that their job is to create positive change in the world of sport when it comes to not only Black student athletes but “administrators and coaches to highlight and make aware of the lack of representation there is in proportion to a lot of student athletes that are black and brown.”

“Hopefully, what you're doing in your small areas spreads out and affects people in a greater way. So you definitely watch [the news] because I think you have to know what's going on to make informed decisions, but also don't get so consumed by it that it just completely takes over,” Taylor said.

As a coach, Taylor pushes herself to educate, support and motivate her players to think beyond the game of basketball while using that knowledge for their higher calling in whatever they choose. 

On November 9, the 2020 Power Five Athletic Department Mental/Behavioral Health Practitioner Race & Gender Report Card was announced, which according to Gill, revealed that about half of the mental health clinicians in the Power Five Conference were white females.

“We have to put some thoughts and feelings around those identities and how they play out. Then, of course, we have conversations about them too, and I think this is helping folks sort of deal with the complexity of life that we have right now,” said Gill. 

“I've taken this time to use my platform, my story and just use my voice as much as I can to impact people,” Woods said.

Woods said that social media can be counterproductive when it isn’t used in moderation. “It can definitely be a tool to success, but at the same time, we have to get back to doing the work individually and making sure we take care of ourselves mentally and physically, which will help us focus in on what we need to be doing as a country,” he said.

Woods’ sentiment was echoed by Coach Taylor when speaking on media consumption, especially during such a divisive election year. “I want to know what's going on not only in the world, but in Georgia, in Athens, and Mississippi where I'm from, so I watch [the news], but I don't let it consume me” she said.

Woods took note that top-performing athletes can sometimes mismanage their own identity. “As humans, we have a bad tendency to idolize people who are famous when they're just as human as you,” he said. “No matter what job and what position they have, they aren’t perfect - they all have their flaws, and we all are a work in progress.”

Taylor stressed for student athletes to “protect their peace” by performing self care. “I cannot help anybody else if I cannot help myself and I'm not centered,” she said. From her own experience, balancing roles as a coach, mother, wife, and activist, Taylor also understands the relationship between emotional intelligence, mental wellness and clarity. Her practice of self-care includes waking up for morning prayer at 4 AM, reading a book on the weekend, taking a bubble bath, and spending time with her husband and two toddlers. 

Woods emphasized that athletes always have a choice, whether it’s to take a knee, sit out, or speak up.

“It’s tough to get our people united as one, especially at a collegiate level, because we've been so engrained to play, so even during this pandemic, a lot of athletes don't understand the power that they have, and we're starting to realize it now,” Woods said. “With my whole situation, it really taught me that athletes have to understand their voice and their platform, so if you choose not to play during a pandemic, it's okay. Coaches and faculty should understand that you’re putting your life at risk in a way that they aren’t.”

With so many issues and so much time to reflect, it seemed all of America stood still and took a deep look at its character going forward during these past few months. Being isolated with the question of who we really are, the focus can remain but must also include the promotion of mental wellness. According to Gill, “We need to have strategies and self-care in place so that wherever we are on that continuum of mental health disorder, that we're continuously working on it and getting better just like we would our physical health. We should all be doing something right now in particular.” 

The NCAA Division I Council has approved an updated draft of proposed student-athlete name, image, and likeness rights (NIL) legislation, which is still subject to further recommendations and modifications, and will be presented for final approval in January 2021. With expectations of a finalized proposal taking effect on August 1, 2021, a shift in the power balance of college athletics, at least for revenue sports.

“[College athletes] create so much money for the NCAA in the past and now and we've been left with nothing. We’ve created so much generational wealth for so many coaches, yet have nothing ourselves to put back into our own communities,” Woods said.

The possibility of change came in the form of masks becoming the norm. The possibility of change came through elections. The possibility of change came through destigmatization of mental health and promotion of mental wellness. Just like in the vein of sports, a possibility is all it takes to get started.

Looking towards the future, positions, roles, and titles may be a part of this answer, but can never fully capture the entirety of one’s character let alone their identity. In these various capacities, in sport, and in life for that matter, all that can be expected of anyone is that they do the best they can with what they have, possibly helping others do the same.