Elections are often talked about in sporting terms.

It’s a race. It’s a game. Who is ahead? By how many points? Play offense. Play defense. Home field advantage. Score big.

But maybe the biggest similarity between picking our leaders and playing ball is in the timing.

When my family watches football, we live by one simple mantra. No matter who Penn State or the Steelers are playing, the enemy isn’t necessarily the other team. It’s the clock.

If our side is in the lead, there’s too much time. If we’re behind, there’s not enough. A quarter doesn’t get longer or shorter based on who has the ball, but somehow our perspective makes it seem that way.

The 2020 election is like that. Preseason for this presidential race began the day after the winner was declared in 2016.

President Trump filed his reelection paperwork in 2017 almost immediately after being sworn into office, but he had already been on a victory tour that looked an awful lot like his campaign rallies. On the other side, Democrats definitely started testing the water in 2017 and then jumping into the pool en masse in 2018 and 2019.

The primary season seemed to stretch forever. So many announcements. So many debates. Weeks of Tuesdays with delegate counts and candidate departures.

But now all that is over. The conventions have been held — albeit virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic. The nominees have been established. Republican Trump will face off against Democratic former vice president Joe Biden, a contest that surprises absolutely no one. Well, maybe Bernie Sanders.

Officially, this is when the game clock starts.

Everything that has happened up until now doesn’t matter. It’s the next two months that make the difference.

But that could be both too much and not enough time.

There is too much time left for voters who have been pummeled by issues, scandals, personal attacks and politics as usual. There is too much time left for both sides to try Hail Mary plays that could deliver an October surprise or just might end in a game-losing fumble.

Pay attention to the polls, and candidates might get cocky or desperate. Ignore them and underestimate the opposition — or the voters.

But it also seems there isn’t enough time.

Over those last four years, divisions have become more entrenched. Positions are more deeply rooted than ever. The polls have even moved little over the convention weeks.

It seems like there is little to do to change the minds of the people. The undecided voter is becoming an increasingly rare breed.

The next weeks won’t be about switching teams. They will be a Hollywood locker room pep talk, stirring the teams to action and encouraging them to play hard to the bitter end. In voting terms, that means getting the most people to the polls.

Elections are more than a game. There is a lot more on the line than bragging rights, and the stakes are higher than a trophy.

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