Camp Fire smoke prompts postponement of Sac-Joaquin Section football playoff games

Smoke from the Camp Fire that has leveled parts of Butte County, including the town of Paradise, and goes down as the deadliest in state history has prompted Sac-Joaquin Section officials to postpone this weekend’s football playoff games back a week.

Games from the Central Coast Section and North Coast Section of the Bay Area have also had games pushed back due to poor air quality, thus posing a serious risk to student athletes competing in games and even those watching.

The CIF office said Wednesday it was pushing back the Northern California and state title games back a week to accommodate the scheduling changes.

The Sac-Joaquin Section finals were scheduled for Nov. 24 but will now be played Nov. 30 and Dec. 1. Section champions advance to NorCal title games, now scheduled for Dec. 7-8.

The CIF finals are now slotted for Dec. 14-15 with upper divisions at Cerritos College in Norwalk and smaller divisions at NorCal home sites.

The section was still hopeful of its section cross country championships going as scheduled for Saturday at Willow Hill course in Folsom. The air quality is forecast to be within “decent ranges that morning,” the section stated in a release.

This story was originally published November 14, 2018 at 2:16 PM.