Rick Patrick
Riverbend News
After much discussion and a split vote, the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Board of Directors voted to move ahead with the fall sports schedule. This means that the fall sports of golf, girls volleyball, cross country, girls weightlifting and, of course, football, can proceed with their seasons. The FHSAA held a special meeting in Gainesville, on Friday, Aug. 14, in order to make a decision on the matter.
On Thursday, July 23, the FHSAA decided to temporarily postpone the beginning of the fall sports seasons until Monday, Aug. 24. Teams were allowed to hold conditioning workouts during that time, provided local school boards agreed. The FHSAA directed Executive Director George Tomyn to work with the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (SMAC) and other advisory committees within the FHSAA to prepare recommendations for the start of fall sports. It was the recommendation of the SMAC to delay the start of fall sports until late October. Part of the reasoning for this was the desire to wait until after school starts to see if a spike in infections from the COVID-19 virus occurs. It was the recommendation of the Football Advisory Committee to begin fall sports on Monday, Aug. 24. Executive Director Tomyn also recommended the Aug. 24 starting date. Board member Carlos Ochoa, Athletic Director for Hialeah Gardens High School, in Miami-Dade County, proposed an amendment to the motion to accept the Aug. 24 date. Ochoa asked for an exemption from the minimum number of games required to be eligible for the state championship series and to allow schools to opt out of the state series by Friday, Sept. 18 and have the ability to form their own regional schedule upon approval from the FHSAA. Ochoa's amendment was passed and after further, extensive discussion, the motion to accept the Executive Director’s recommendation was passed on 11-5 vote.
"We are very pleased with today's decision that gives schools the opportunity begin fall sports practices on Aug. 24,” said Richard Finlayson, Aucilla Christian Academy Principal and FHSAA Board member. “We felt strongly from the beginning that these decisions were best left in the hands of local leaders. We trust the local health and education leaders to make sound decisions in regards to what is in the best interest of their local school community.”
Hamilton County High School Head Coach Kirkland Mitchell echoed the feelings of many area coaches. “We are excited to play football,” said Coach Mitchell. “[Our] guys [have] been working really hard for the long upcoming season.”
Many area schools will now begin filling in bare spots in their schedules for the various fall sports. In addition, schools will need to finalize procedures for allowing fans into sporting venues. These decisions will need to be made in conjunction with local health officials.