‘There is no rush.’ KHSAA commissioner wants right, not rapid, decisions in reopening.
After losing all spring sports to the coronavirus shutdowns, Kentucky High School Athletic Association Commissioner Julian Tackett struck an optimistic tone Friday that activities could return in some form this fall.
But what those football, soccer, volleyball, golf, field hockey and cross country seasons would look like — whether they be shortened or delayed — will depend on the disease’s spread this summer and the guidance from health officials.
“The virus is in control. We do not know,” Tackett said in a conference call with media members from across the state Friday afternoon. “For us to sit here on May 8 and say, ‘OK, here’s what we’re going to do on June 20,’ is just not realistic. It’s probably not realistic to say with any surety that we’re definitely going to play or definitely not, but I feel a whole lot better than I did a week ago with some of the things nationally and statewide as far as options.”
Thursday, Gov. Andy Beshear outlined more of Kentucky’s Phase 2 plan to reopen the state amid the pandemic, including letting gyms and “low touch” youth sports resume operations next month.
Those areas don’t necessarily apply to high schools, Tackett said, and the KHSAA is seeking clarification on those semantics, but the guidelines have prompted the organization to perhaps step up its own considerations for phasing in high school athletics.
“It does start to give us some hope,” Tackett said. “That is probably the most important thing that we have tried to keep going through all this discussion.”
Currently, high school athletics is in a “COVID dead period” where coaches can communicate with players, but can’t organize in-person training, practices or team events. And all campus facilities remain closed through May 31.
Loosening those restrictions will be considered at the end of May and possibly again in mid-June and the end of June as the fall sports calendar approaches. Under the normal schedule, some football activities were set to begin July 10 and other sports could begin practicing July 15.
“I just don’t think that 2020 in any sport is going to look like 2019,” Tackett said. “That’s probably the first thing we ought to get into our head.”
Probably the first indication of a shortened or delayed football season will come in mid-June from the KHSAA as it begins figuring out how to handle as many as 50 early-season bowl games that often require contracts and significant travel. Tackett said slightly pushing back the state football championships deeper into December and cancelling some non-district games could happen.
“Everything’s got to be on the table,” Tackett said. “The number one thing that we are trying to shoot for is the kids have an opportunity this (fall) to play a season.”
That will also depend on the health guidelines in the fall. With thousands of players and their coaches on the field and families and fellow students in the stands, proper social distancing might not be feasible.
“At some point, there’s choices that people are going to make. … That’s the very reason why nothing’s even being talked about till June,” Tackett said. “The whole ‘How realistic is the social distancing?’ (is a question). And what you don’t want to do is get into a position where you’re putting out guidance saying, ‘Look, buyer beware: Do what you want to.’ You really want to try to be leading people down the right path. … That’s what everybody’s trying to do.”
And that’s why some sort of later phasing of sports is likely, Tackett said. That phasing could mean some districts with fewer cases could start sooner than others. Some sports with fewer distancing concerns, like golf, could start sooner than others. But all those decisions can be made later this summer.
“There is no rush — because of the unknowns — for us to jump back into the full-scale competitions,” Tackett said. “And it will be a while before there is some sense of feeling normal either playing or going to games.”
Screening and testing of so many involved in high school sports also seems difficult given the limited supply of tests seen to date, and restricting the number of fans at the gate could also be problematic and difficult for schools to enforce, Tackett said. Likewise, any type of COVID waiver for athletes and families probably “wouldn’t be worth the paper it’s printed on,” and wouldn’t shield schools or the KHSAA from lawsuits if the virus spreads even if those parties said they accepted the risks, Tackett said.
Teenagers generally haven’t been a significant group affected by the virus’ worst symptoms, but can still carry the virus.
“I am worried about who (players) take it to, and coaches that they take it to,” Tackett said. “Does that interaction between a coach and a player on the sideline suddenly affect the coach when the player never had symptoms? We’ve got to think like that till we get an answer to this virus.”
Tackett said he’s watching closely any developments on treatments for the deadly illness and the possibility of a vaccine, although he acknowledges that might be further off.
Regardless, even though high school sports don’t represent the same kinds of revenues generated by college or pro sports, he feels they remain important.
“It’s important for a totally different reason,” he said. “It’s important for community. It’s important for society getting back to some feel of normalcy. … even if you’re no longer walking up, like I have done for years and bro hugging and shaking hands and all this other stuff. Even if you can’t do that for a while, it’s important to get society back together. That’s the very advantage of American interscholastic sports that no other country has — is what it does in the communities.”
