Fans of high school football in Texas have been on the edge of their seats waiting to see if the 2020 season will be canceled.
For most of the early summer, the updates and news were not looking good. COVID-19 cases saw an increase in late June and throughout July. Several large metropolitan areas, such as San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston implemented various increased safety measures. The outlook was bleak. We, at TexasHighSchoolFootball.com, were finding ourselves reporting bad news update after bad news update. We were all waiting for a glimmer of good news. If football was to be played, we needed a sign fo hope. Then, it happened.
On July 21st, the UIL announced plans to move forward with the 2020 Texas high school football season.
You can view their original UIL announcement by clicking here:“Breaking News: UIL Announces Plans for 2020 Season”
The UIL announced that 1-4A would stay on track for a “normal season.” This meant that football practices could begin on August 3rd, with games Starting August 24th. This was welcomed news for coaches, such as Jeff Jones, the Head Coach of Garden City, a 1A school in west-central Texas. As reported by our Senior Writer, Adam Ogburn, coach Jones said:
“It is a huge relief to hear this news. We were all hoping that we wouldn’t have the season delayed.” – Jeff Jones
Josh Gibson, the Head Coach of the defending 4A Division 2 UIL State Champions Texarkana Pleasant Grove, added:
“I was extremely excited to see the UIL’s plan today and I applaud them for their efforts. Our kids and coaches were extremely excited when the news broke today! We are blessed to get a full season, and this is one step closer to normalcy.” -Josh Gibson
See what other 1-4A coaches said by clicking here: “1-4A Coaches React to Today’s UIL Decision on 2020 Season”
1-4A football programs are back on the practice field and preparing for their first games of the season, which come in two weeks. However, the larger schools in Texas are still sitting on the sidelines waiting for their time to put the pads on and get back on the field.
5 and 6A schools will not be able to begin practice until September 7th. They won’t play their first games until September 24th. If the season goes as planned, and that is a BIG “if,” they won’t be playing their state championship games until January 2021.
The delaying of the 2020 Texas high school football season by the UIL for the larger schools by more than a month does give the schools and football programs more time to comply with all CDC guidelines and ensure, as best they can, the safety of their players, as well as the coaches, families, and all those who come in contact with the players.
The good news is, we have seen a recent decline in Corona Virus cases throughout Texas in the past week, and so far we have not had reports of any issues with 1-4A teams. 5-6A teams will be watching what happens with the 1-4A schools. If the schools can get through the August practices and through the first two weeks of games before 5-6A begin their practices, the outlook of a full season for all Texas high school football teams will be looking much better.
We hope for a full and exciting 2020 Texas high school football season, and most of all, we hope for the safety and health of all the young athletes as they return to the gridiron!
_________________________________________
To stay up to date on all the latest UIL and Texas high school football updates, follow us on Facebook
Click Here: https://www.facebook.com/texashsfootball1.
View our most recent season preview here:
Texas High School Football 2020 Season Preview: District 15-6A
