Fairbanks linebacker Tanner Ufferman (19) tackles a ball carrier during a 2010 game. Current rules and recommendations have been set in place for a 2020 season in the midst of COVID-19. (Journal-Tribune photo by Tim Miller)
If there is to be a high school football season this fall in the midst of the coronavirus, teams will have to make some changes.
The National Federation of High Schools and the Ohio High School Athletic Association have issued procedural revisions for the upcoming 2020 gridiron campaign.
Guidelines were released Wednesday afternoon and each school, city and state could implement additional safety measures in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“That was an interesting 38-page document to read,” said Fairbanks High School head coach Patrick Cotter.
While the guidelines made for some lengthy reading, the Panther boss said he understands why they have been implemented.
“We coaches want to see our kids play football and have fun this season,” said Cotter. “There are a lot of recommendations that have been made in order to keep everyone safe.”
Among other things, the rules and recommendations include the six-foot social distancing whenever possible, such as on the sidelines.
Cloth face coverings are permissible for players, as are plastic shields (no tint) that cover the entire face (unless integrated into football face masks and attached to the helmet).
Cloth masks are also permissible for all coaches, team staff and game administration officials.
The NFHS and OHSAA are still looking at how best to handle tooth and mouth protectors.
No guidelines have been established for that type of protection.
Schools are also asked to limit the number of non-essential personnel who are on the field level throughout the contest.
Other highlights of the recommendations include:
-Ball holders should maintain social distancing of six feet at all times during games;
-Officials will have limited contact with the ball. The players on the offensive team will handle the ball and take it with them into the huddle. The umpire will place a bean bag at the spot on the field where the ball will be snapped;
-Footballs will be cleaned and sanitized as often as recommended by the ball manufacturer;
-The protocol for pre-game and post-game hand shakes will be stopped.
There are also time proposals such as 12-minute halftimes (instead of 20), with teams social distancing outside lockerrooms and two-minute breaks between the first and second quarters and the third and fourth periods.
There is also a plan to implement mandatory timeouts at the six-minute mark of each quarter with the shortened halftimes.
“Those changes could lengthen games a bit,” said Cotter. “However, we play on Friday nights and there’s no school on Saturday.
“We want to do all we can to play games, but at the same time, keep everyone safe.”
National and state high school officials, however, have warned the current guidelines could quickly become outdated.
Although Cotter said he understands all of the regulations and recommendations, there was one that at first caught him off guard.
“They are recommending that each player use four T-shirts each game night,” he said. “At first, that had my head spinning like a confused dog.”
The recommendation is for players to wear one T-shirt under their jerseys during pre-game warm-ups and then switch to a clean T-shirt for the first half.
The practice is to continue at halftime and a fourth T-shirt should be worn home.
“I read that twice and then understood where they are coming from,” said Cotter.
“We just want to do all we can in order to begin preseason practice on Aug. 1 and proceed to our season.”
he said.