Tom Dodge
There will be no jamborees this fall as the LHSAA sent out its latest decision to its member schools.
The LHSAA has also decreed no scrimmages, jamborees, 7-on-7 practices/tournaments and other types of practices between teams will take place this fall.
“Those inter-school competitions will be eliminated to decrease contact between opposing players, coaches, school personnel and fans,” the LHSAA said.
Last week, the LHSAA announced that member schools would have the opportunity to play an exhibition game during the week of Oct. 3.
St. Edmund was set to face Vermilion Catholic in the Joe Nagata Memorial Jamboree.
“It is very disappointing to lose the jamboree,” St. Edmund head coach James Shiver said. “This is a business and we are losing a lot of money.
“Not only are we not having a chance at a jamboree, we are losing two homes games at the start of the season.”
At Eunice High, the Bobcats were to face Iota in the preseason game.
“The more important thing to me is playing the games,” Eunice High head coach Andre Vige said of not participating in a jamboree. “The scrimmage and jamborees are more for preparation for the players to get them into better game shape.
“We will take care of that through inter squad competition,” the Bobcat coach said.
The LHSAA earlier pushed the start of football’s regular season back to Oct. 8 with a six, seven or eight week season option depending on when contact is allowed.
If an eight-game football schedule is followed, the regular season would last from Oct. 8 to Nov. 28.
The playoffs would then be four rounds start on December 3.
The Prep Classic would then be held December 27-29.
“We hoped to play a 10-game schedule,” Vige said. “But with an eight game schedule, we will drop a home game against Northwest and our road match-up against Jennings.”
For a six-game season, the Prep Classic would remain on the same date as originally scheduled (Dec. 10-12), while seven games would likely see the state championships being held Dec. 14-16.
The LHSAA is expected to release its plan for the football season on Aug. 28.
Another notable change for football is the “bowl game” option.
Due to a condensed regular season and postseason bracket, teams that do not make the playoffs will have the option to schedule an additional game.
Schools will have until the regional round of the playoffs to play the game with the two participating schools splitting the gate proceeds.
“It think it is a good idea,” Vige said. “It would give a team a chance to maybe face a rival that you missed out on playing during the season.
“We would love to make the playoffs,” he said. “If they take away a round and drop it from 32 to 16 teams, that makes it smaller margin of error and you can’t afford a slip up during the season –you could miss out on the playoffs.”
In an effort to maintain social distancing, sideline boxes will be expanded to the 15-yard lines with teams asked to expand toward the bleachers if needed.
Individual water bottles for players and masks that must be worn when players are on the sideline will be part of the new structure.
“This is going to be very complicated,” Shiver said. “In the middle of the game it will be hard to regulate all that is required of the coaches.
“We have 15 trainers and they can do what we need them to do,” the Blue Jay coach said. “We will do what we need to do to play the games.”
Roster limits are also recommended, especially for larger schools.
“We are considering dressing out only the guys we depend on playing so that would help with the social distancing,” Vige said.
“There will be a problem with the guys coming off the field immediately putting on a mask,” the Bobcat coach said. “They are winded and thirsty and that’s the challenge.”
For high school volleyball, practice and intrasquad scrimmages are allowed in Phase 2 as well as static groups of 25.
When the state moves into Phase 3 of reopening, the interscholastic competition and static groups of 50 will be allowed.
For cross country, the total number of people, staggered start times, limiting spectators to two per athlete or no spectators are options.
There are also options for individual time trial and team time trial racing and allowing up to 25 racers on the starting line in Phase 2 and 50 in Phase 3.
Masks are also high priority, and it is recommended that start/finish lines be placed in different locations.
The LHSSA’s decision is the latest change during a tumultuous year that saw the COVID-19 pandemic force the LHSAA to suspend all spring sports in mid-March before canceling them in May.
On the college athletics front, the Mid America Conference was the first FBS league to call off playing fall sports and the Mountain West followed with its decision to cancel.
The Ivy League also cancelled its fall sports with the hope that they will return in the spring for a modified season if the health crisis improves.
The Southwestern Athletic Conference postponed fall sports competition with the plan to play football, soccer and volleyball in the spring.
The Big Ten and Pac-12 conferences voted on Tuesday to cancel the 2020 college football season and possibly attempt to play in spring 2021.
The Atlantic Coast Conference intends to play this fall, according to news reports, while SEC commissioner Greg Sankey has called for patience in noting that his conference has been diligently making decisions throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
The SEC has given no indication it has plans to cancel its season and has established Sept. 26 as the new kickoff of a 10-game Conference-only schedule.
The SEC football championship game will be played Dec. 19 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, rescheduled from the original date of Dec. 5.
The Big 12’s presidents have decided on Wdnesday to allow their conference to proceed toward playing the 2020 college football season this fall.
The Big 12 schedule will consist of nine conference games and one non conference game with a start date of Sept. 26.
The Conference USA board of directors has approved the league’s timeline and scheduling format for football competition for the 2020 season, as well as operational protocols for return to play.
The Sun Belt Conference which includes Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns, is also moving forward with its plans to participate in fall sports.
The Southland Conference which includes McNeese State and Southeastern Louisiana still plans to play fall sports.