College and prep football teams face wild options, including spring season in 2021
Imagine the 50th Holy Bowl between Christian Brothers and Jesuit playing out in front of some 20,000 cozy souls at Hughes Stadium ... in March.
And weeks later, the Causeway Classic between Sacramento State and UC Davis kicking off in a packed venue with a playoff berth on the line.
Outlandish thinking worthy of smelling salts?
Before the year 2020, yes. These days? Not so much, because all suggestions have been considered. That is what has defined much of the country during the COVID-19 pandemic as social distancing and avoiding large gatherings has been mandated to slow the spread of the coronavirus, including the regional football landscape.
Coaches, athletic directors and commissioners are planners. These days, they look ahead wondering when football might resume and in what form, and they brainstorm over Zoom meetings, calls or texts, since in-person meetings are not happening.
Football is a curiosity as the largest participation sport and biggest revenue-earning event. Football fires up a high school campus and can set a tone to last the academic year. Football gate receipts also finance other sports on campus and it can be the social epicenter of a community.
College football is its own animal; it’s a major big deal.
But there are more questions than answers for both colleges and high schools.
“We’re all in a circumstance where everything is on pause,” UC Davis athletic director Kevin Blue said. “Whether or not or how we can have football in the fall .... more likely we have more answers in June. That’s our next mile marker.”
There has been discussion that for colleges and high schools to salvage football seasons, significant changes would have to be made beyond extra measures to ensure safety for players and fans. There have been more than a million confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S., with more than 60,000 deaths as of Thursday night.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday detailed a four-phase plan to reopen the state. Stage 4 would be the conclusion of the shelter-in mandate, allowing concerts and live-audience sporting events and other such large gatherings to reopen. But when?
Newsom said Tuesday that Stage 2 is “weeks” away, Stage 3 is likely “months” away, leaving Stage 4 as the final hurdle, which could depend on a vaccine or a breakthrough happening.
In the meantime, a lot of waiting. Patience is the name of the game.
“There’s not a manual or any protocol on how to deal with this,” Sac State athletic director Mark Orr said. “We have to be patient and prepared for when and if student-athletes are allowed to return any time soon. We understand that. We know safety is the concern. Football is a significant revenue source and it’s a source of pride for students and fans. Here in Sacramento, we’re different that college football in Tuscaloosa or Baton Rouge, but it’s still big and important here.”
Orr added, “I’m talking every day with peer ADs and NCAA officials. The challenge is different states may have different timelines on when things are considered safe, and how do you put together a fair and competitive experience when we all may have different timelines.”
Sierra College announced this week it would not have on-campus classes this fall, the first junior college in the state to do so.
“This does not affect fall sports,” Sierra College football coach Ben Noonan said. “If there is a fall season for football, Sierra College will be participating.”
And the high schools
Predictably, there has been speculation and rumor that the California Interscholastic Federation has already decided on what to do with football. Not true.
CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti said he is in regular contact with the 10 section commissioners across the state. Everything and anything is on the table, including shortening the regular season, or capping playoff seasons at the sectional round and not having NorCal and SoCal regional finals or state finals.
Or even a spring season. Anything to get this sport in.
“Good planning for any scenario is never a waste of time,” Nocetti said. “We will consider anything and we have to be willing to look at all the ideals.”
Nocetti added with emphasis that safety is paramount, that the CIF and its 10 sections will abide by what county health officials and Gov. Newsom say. Though football is far and away the most profitable sport for the CIF and its sections, Nocetti was adamant in stressing that, “Finances are not driving any decisions.”
He added, “Let’s be honest. That’s what social media is about — people making assumptions and guesses. We’re a completely transparent organization, and as soon as we have factual information, we’ll share it. We want to be ready to hit the ground running for whenever that start date for any of our fall sports might be.”
Planning for the unknown
Like any athletic director, Hank Weinberger of Jesuit High School has been peppered with questions from coaches, athletes and alums. When will football resume? Will it resume? What will it look like?
“I’m putting a plan in place for multiple scenarios,” Weinberger said. “Seeing the four phases from Gov. Newsom opened some light. Wow. We have a potential plan in place. We’d love to have fans at that 50th Holy Bowl, but we have to be safe. We need to stick in this together and abide by regulations. “
He added, “Right now, we’re developing some guidelines when we do return, when we can practice again: in small groups, having 10 in a gym at one time to shoot hoops, students wearing gloves while running football routes. Whenever we’re cleared to go, we’ll be ready.”
Football coach role
Football coaches are the leaders of the largest teams on any campus, with rosters up to 75 players. Those student-athletes look up to their coaches and look to them for answers.
Coaches have no answers, just optimism there will be a season.
“I’ve heard so much speculation that I know that nobody has any real answers,” Pleasant Grove coach Matt Costa said. “I don’t care when we play. I’m going with the concept that we can start in June for summer football like we always have until someone tells me otherwise. If we don’t start football until March, OK, fine. Tell me when the first game is and we’ll be there.
“We all want to know when we can press go. I tell our guys that we will have a season, to just hang in there, but don’t know when the season will be.”
In Orangevale, Casa Roble coach Chris Horner spoke to his team via Zoom on Thursday afternoon. He reminded players who listen to speculation on social media or otherwise, “Anyone who has an opinion and thinks they know when high school football will start is full of it because no one knows.”
He added, “I was talking to (Roseville coach) Joe Cattolico and he brought up a great point. We know football will happen but (not) when and how. What if a kid tests positive for coronavirus? It’s a scary thing. We also know this is a super-contagious disease. Football is played on the dirtiest surface — field turf — and players are spitting on each other, sweating on each other, sharing water bottles. We’ve got a lot to wrap our heads around.”
Coaches agree no one has a competitive advantage here. No area school is going to have workouts and practices while others do not.
“A lot of coaches are talking to each other, and we’re all in the same boat,” Horner said. “That’s what we take comfort in. We’re all in this together, hoping, waiting, preparing any way we can.”
This story was originally published May 1, 2020 at 4:00 AM.