When should high school football season start?

[roygod]

Between Covid19 and hurricane season, this would be a great excuse to start Florida high school football later. The FHSAA should consider how many games were cancelled because of hurricanes. As August and September are peak hurricane months, maybe we should consider starting high school  football in Florida October 1st. Just don't schedule out of state games in the 2nd half. The only problem I see is the overlap into basketball season, where players will have to choose a sport.

[DarterBlue2]

1 hour ago, roygod said:

Between Covid19 and hurricane season, this would be a great excuse to start Florida high school football later. The FHSAA should consider how many games were cancelled because of hurricanes. As August and September are peak hurricane months, maybe we should consider starting high school  football in Florida October 1st. Just don't schedule out of state games in the 2nd half. The only problem I see is the overlap into basketball season, where players will have to choose a sport.

I hate this idea. Covid-19 is almost certain to have a fall spike. The last thing I want to do is put: athletes, coaches and fans at severe risk.  If we are going to do football late, then the season should be played February through the end of April. By February, we should be able to measure the extent of any Covid spike and scrap the season if necessary. Also, there is a shot that an effective vaccine may be developed by then. 

[roygod]

1 hour ago, DarterBlue2 said:

I hate this idea. Covid-19 is almost certain to have a fall spike. The last thing I want to do is put: athletes, coaches and fans at severe risk.  If we are going to do football late, then the season should be played February through the end of April. By February, we should be able to measure the extent of any Covid spike and scrap the season if necessary. Also, there is a shot that an effective vaccine may be developed by then. 

The smartest medical people in the world cannot predict a second spike. If there is one we'll be ready for it. Also you'll notice there have been no deaths to high school age healthy players. But I can guarantee you there will be hurricanes!

[DarterBlue2]

3 hours ago, roygod said:

The smartest medical people in the world cannot predict a second spike. If there is one we'll be ready for it. Also you'll notice there have been no deaths to high school age healthy players. But I can guarantee you there will be hurricanes!

There have been deaths to a number of individuals under 20. So, you are wrong on that score. Also, your statement ignores the fact that high school players could be asymptomatic carriers, taking the virus home to older, sicker relatives. As, to a second spike, Coronaviruses almost always have second spikes. And, they typically occur in the fall.

You state we will be ready for it if it occurs. Prey say how? We currently have neither a vaccine nor an effective regimen of drugs that can at least mitigate, if not cure, the illness. 

[Jambun82]

10 hours ago, DarterBlue2 said:

I hate this idea. Covid-19 is almost certain to have a fall spike. The last thing I want to do is put: athletes, coaches and fans at severe risk.  If we are going to do football late, then the season should be played February through the end of April. By February, we should be able to measure the extent of any Covid spike and scrap the season if necessary. Also, there is a shot that an effective vaccine may be developed by then. 

I would be interesting to have football season during February to possibly early May. I have always felt that this would be a great idea with no Hurricanes, very little severe thunderstorms, and less heat than August and September. I wonder if Rutgers and Princeton would have played that game in March instead of November in 1869, maybe football would be a spring instead of a fall sport.

[blystr2002]

5 hours ago, DarterBlue2 said:

There have been deaths to a number of individuals under 20. So, you are wrong on that score. Also, your statement ignores the fact that high school players could be asymptomatic carriers, taking the virus home to older, sicker relatives. As, to a second spike, Coronaviruses almost always have second spikes. And, they typically occur in the fall.

You state we will be ready for it if it occurs. Prey say how? We currently have neither a vaccine nor an effective regimen of drugs that can at least mitigate, if not cure, the illness. 

On top of that, I would add that not all HS football players are healthy or without underlying conditions.  Some players do have asthma, diabetes, obesity, undiagnosed heart issues that slip by etc. You are playing roulette with the odds.  While most kids won't die or will be asymptomatic I would hate to be the guy who gave the go ahead and 1 kid dies or the coach of that team.

[blystr2002]

The problem with having football Feb.-May is other sports. Most teams only have one field, so you run into playoff soccer, lax, flag football, and a lot of schools track teams practice field events on football field. You move them and you have same problem just with different sports. Also, track, lax, and baseball guys who play football as well. You would have to change a lot to move football.

[Jambun82]

5 minutes ago, blystr2002 said:

The problem with having football Feb.-May is other sports. Most teams only have one field, so you run into playoff soccer, lax, flag football, and a lot of schools track teams practice field events on football field. You move them and you have same problem just with different sports. Also, track, lax, and baseball guys who play football as well. You would have to change a lot to move football.

I know that it is not a practical solution. It is just an idea that I have wondered about over the years.

[THIS_IS_DILLARD]

How I feel bout all of this let the kids play in august. No matter what day,year,or month We play ball there will be germs, from deadly to none deadly. 
 

the air we breath is pollute,the meats we eat are poisoned & filled with steroids. With that said it’s time to get back to some form of normalcy, we can’t stay locked down forever neither can we expect to just wake up and it’s poof pow the world is back to normal; Everyone just needs to stay sanitary & let’s move forward.

[DarterBlue2]

6 hours ago, THIS_IS_DILLARD said:

How I feel bout all of this let the kids play in august. No matter what day,year,or month We play ball there will be germs, from deadly to none deadly. 
 

the air we breath is pollute,the meats we eat are poisoned & filled with steroids. With that said it’s time to get back to some form of normalcy, we can’t stay locked down forever neither can we expect to just wake up and it’s poof pow the world is back to normal; Everyone just needs to stay sanitary & let’s move forward.

Bro, the problem I have with that is the following. Unlike something like HIV, it can be contracted very easily; and it kills quickly. Packed stadiums will be breeding grounds for its spread. Also, if one kid on the team has the virus, he will spread it to his teammates. As a result, whole teams may have to forfeit their seasons when an outbreak takes place. These teammates will take it home to their families. It could end up being a vicious cycle in some communities. The thing is, also, that it is the poor and lower middle class that will suffer the worst because of this. This means that minority communities (yours and mine) may end up with the worst impacts from this action.

Believe me, I want to see high school football as much as anyone. I have not missed a week's game in 22 seasons except for when I have been out of state. I also understand that in some cases scholarships may be on the line. But to me there is nothing more precious than life. I don't want to lose mine, and I don't want to support a situation in which the lives of others may be lost to gratify my pleasure. I feel that by next year this time there will be an effective treatment or vaccine. The loss of one season is a reasonable price to pay for the safety of the community. 

[roygod]

7 hours ago, DarterBlue2 said:

Bro, the problem I have with that is the following. Unlike something like HIV, it can be contracted very easily; and it kills quickly. Packed stadiums will be breeding grounds for its spread. Also, if one kid on the team has the virus, he will spread it to his teammates. As a result, whole teams may have to forfeit their seasons when an outbreak takes place. These teammates will take it home to their families. It could end up being a vicious cycle in some communities. The thing is, also, that it is the poor and lower middle class that will suffer the worst because of this. This means that minority communities (yours and mine) may end up with the worst impacts from this action.

Believe me, I want to see high school football as much as anyone. I have not missed a week's game in 22 seasons except for when I have been out of state. I also understand that in some cases scholarships may be on the line. But to me there is nothing more precious than life. I don't want to lose mine, and I don't want to support a situation in which the lives of others may be lost to gratify my pleasure. I feel that by next year this time there will be an effective treatment or vaccine. The loss of one season is a reasonable price to pay for the safety of the community. 

If we follow your plan to stay in our houses till we are safe from all future threats there will be no future football and probably no United States. The depression of 1933 will be kid stuff compared to your plan. We will become a third world country ruled by China.  We have a new strain of Flu Virus every year and we don't have vaccine's for many of them. Heck, one of us may go out and cross the street and get run over by a bus, or may die in a head on crash on I-95, or get hit by an meteor! There is no way we can predict the future, and there is no way we can stay locked up in our protective bubble for the rest of our lives. Let's get out there and return to normal quickly and take another chance like we do with every other situation we encounter in our everyday lives!!!

[DarterBlue2]

51 minutes ago, roygod said:

If we follow your plan to stay on our houses till we are safe from all future threats there will be no future football and probably no United States. The depression of 1933 will be kid stuff compared to your plan. We will become a third world country ruled by China.  We have a new strain of Flu Virus every year and we don't have vaccine's for many of them. Heck, one of us may go out and cross the street and get run over by a bus, or may die in a head on crash on I-95, or get hit by an meteor! There is no way we can predict the future, and there is no way we can stay locked up in our protective bubble for the rest of our lives. Let's get out there and return to normal quickly and take another chance like we do with every other situation we encounter in our everyday lives!!!

You have, in a nutshell, demonstrated your abject ignorance. It is interesting you did not address the questions I specifically asked you. I will leave you be as it is not worth attempting to have an intelligent conversation with you.

Stay safe, I wish you no harm.

Shalom!

[badbird]

2 hours ago, DarterBlue2 said:

You have, in a nutshell, demonstrated your abject ignorance. It is interesting you did not address the questions I specifically asked you. I will leave you be as it is not worth attempting to have an intelligent conversation with you.

Stay safe, I wish you no harm.

Shalom!

lol 

 

I agree with some of your points Darter.  Someone on a team is going to get it and it will quickly spread to them all.  Teams will have to cancel games and maybe the season.  Not sure the answer and what you can do sports wise.  However it appears we are headed right back to opening every thing up.  It's almost like the China virus never existed.  Problem is the virus isn't going away.  Just as many people are getting it every day.  I almost feel like until 70-80% of the people get it, it is not going to slow down.  I think the virus has to run it's course and not much we can do to stop it.   

[DarterBlue2]

1 hour ago, badbird said:

lol 

 

I agree with some of your points Darter.  Someone on a team is going to get it and it will quickly spread to them all.  Teams will have to cancel games and maybe the season.  Not sure the answer and what you can do sports wise.  However it appears we are headed right back to opening every thing up.  It's almost like the China virus never existed.  Problem is the virus isn't going away.  Just as many people are getting it every day.  I almost feel like until 70-80% of the people get it, it is not going to slow down.  I think the virus has to run it's course and not much we can do to stop it.   

Coach, we have shut down for long enough. I will agree with that. What we did not do effectively, though, is ramp up testing and contact tracing during the shutdown. This is were we and China differed. One of my sons, a proud Apopka alumni, lives in China. So, I am very aware of how they handled theirs compared to how we have handled ours. Now to be fair, China is not America. Their system of government is more authoritarian. But if you look at South Korea and Taiwan, as well, a stark pattern emerges as to how we have behaved versus how they did. And it shows in the results. 

I am now in my mid 60's. I have maintained good health due to strict diet and exercise. I would love to see my grandchild reach adulthood. You can be sure I will not engage in undisciplined, reckless behavior to compromise that. Based on where we are going in the USA you are probably right. Most of us will have to get it before it runs its natural course, unless a vaccine arrives within the next year. But I strongly feel it did not have to happen this way. 

I am now retired, so I don't have to navigate the potential minefield of work. So, until we have a vaccine, effective treatment, or it "magically goes away", or it shows clear signs of having run its course, I will restrict my activities to my morning walk/run, grocery shopping, and other essential activities. For the first time in 22 seasons, I think I will miss the entire high school football season. 

[roygod]

6 hours ago, DarterBlue2 said:

You have, in a nutshell, demonstrated your abject ignorance. It is interesting you did not address the questions I specifically asked you. I will leave you be as it is not worth attempting to have an intelligent conversation with you.

Stay safe, I wish you no harm.

Shalom!

If there is any ignorance being demonstrated here I think it might be by somebody other than me. Over the course of evolution we have been hit with many new virus's and have developed immunities for most of them, and that is what we are doing right now, developing immunities to Covid19, except for the weak and unhealthy. We have hid long enough, its time to get back to living almost normal lives. Our young people have to get back to work before we totally destroy our economy. I'm 78 years old with diabetes, being overweight, and two stokes, a totally high risk subject. I had my flu shot in the fall but I still contracted the flu (or covid19) in the last week of January while attending a high school basketball game. I'm still alive and ready to go to a high school football game.

[badbird]

1 hour ago, roygod said:

If there is any ignorance being demonstrated here I think it might be by somebody other than me. Over the course of evolution we have been hit with many new virus's and have developed immunities for most of them, and that is what we are doing right now, developing immunities to Covid19, except for the weak and unhealthy. We have hid long enough, its time to get back to living almost normal lives. Our young people have to get back to work before we totally destroy our economy. I'm 78 years old with diabetes, being overweight, and two stokes, a totally high risk subject. I had my flu shot in the fall but I still contracted the flu (or covid19) in the last weak of January while attending a high school basketball game. I'm still alive and ready to go to a high school football game.

If they don't play football this year there is a good chance you will never see it again.  I see why you want it 

[HornetFan]

They should move the start of the HS football season up to mid-August with the goal to finish before Thanksgiving. This virus didn't hit the US in the Fall of 2019; it came in late Winter. It's now the end of May and we still have Governors playing politics with the "Stay at Home" orders. Delaying the start of HS football will result in no HS football. Play the games without fans if necessary. This virus is overwhelmingly impacting senior citizens with almost 95% of deaths being aged 65 or over and 1/3 of all deaths are nursing home residents. The virus impacts younger people even less that the seasonal flu. Every day, I see young kids and teenagers playing together showing no interest in social distancing. Look at the beaches the past few weeks; they're crowded with teenagers. 

[DarterBlue2]

2 hours ago, roygod said:

If there is any ignorance being demonstrated here I think it might be by somebody other than me. Over the course of evolution we have been hit with many new virus's and have developed immunities for most of them, and that is what we are doing right now, developing immunities to Covid19, except for the weak and unhealthy. We have hid long enough, its time to get back to living almost normal lives. Our young people have to get back to work before we totally destroy our economy. I'm 78 years old with diabetes, being overweight, and two stokes, a totally high risk subject. I had my flu shot in the fall but I still contracted the flu (or covid19) in the last weak of January while attending a high school basketball game. I'm still alive and ready to go to a high school football game.

Knock yourself out. I will not be attending your funeral. 

[DarterBlue2]

1 hour ago, HornetFan said:

They should move the start of the HS football season up to mid-August with the goal to finish before Thanksgiving. This virus didn't hit the US in the Fall of 2019; it came in late Winter. It's now the end of May and we still have Governors playing politics with the "Stay at Home" orders. Delaying the start of HS football will result in no HS football. Play the games without fans if necessary. This virus is overwhelmingly impacting senior citizens with almost 95% of deaths being aged 65 or over and 1/3 of all deaths are nursing home residents. The virus impacts younger people even less that the seasonal flu. Every day, I see young kids and teenagers playing together showing no interest in social distancing. Look at the beaches the past few weeks; they're crowded with teenagers. 

Dude, it came in late winter because it did not migrate to humans in China till early winter, late fall. I guarantee you the second spike here will be in the fall. 

[HornetFan]

31 minutes ago, DarterBlue2 said:

Dude, it came in late winter because it did not migrate to humans in China till early winter, late fall. I guarantee you the second spike here will be in the fall. 

If it comes in the Fall, and that's a big "if" unless you want to politicize the virus, our doctors, scientists, and leaders will be better positioned to deal with it. By isolating our senior population, of which I am one, and practicing social distancing, wearing masks in enclosed areas, and good personal sanitation efforts, our younger population will be able to attend school and participate in school sports. Kids have enjoying their extra two months of Summer vacation this year with hardly skipping a beat. It's the media, politicians, and school teachers sowing fear in the population. If a kid lives in a home that has a senior citizen at risk, maybe that kid skips team sports. You don't penalize the entire student population because of the fears of a few. If we did, we would close all schools every Fall because of the flu, a virus that kills more young people each year than the covid-19 does.

[DarterBlue2]

5 minutes ago, HornetFan said:

If it comes in the Fall, and that's a big "if" unless you want to politicize the virus, our doctors, scientists, and leaders will be better positioned to deal with it. By isolating our senior population, of which I am one, and practicing social distancing, wearing masks in enclosed areas, and good personal sanitation efforts, our younger population will be able to attend school and participate in school sports. Kids have enjoying their extra two months of Summer vacation this year with hardly skipping a beat. It's the media, politicians, and school teachers sowing fear in the population. If a kid lives in a home that has a senior citizen at risk, maybe that kid skips team sports. You don't penalize the entire student population because of the fears of a few. If we did, we would close all schools every Fall because of the flu, a virus that kills more young people each year than the covid-19 does.

I think you are doing all the politicizing. I am just trying to stay safe. The arguments you make comparing the flu to this virus are asinine at best. We don't have familiarity with this virus and we also don't have the level of "population immunity" to it. I have not had the flu in over 30-years probably because I am immune to most of its strains. I would never assume that with respect to Covid-19.

I had some respect for you last football season. Don't let it all go out the window. We have nothing else to say to each other on this matter. I am out. 

[HornetFan]

3 minutes ago, DarterBlue2 said:

I think you are doing all the politicizing. I am just trying to stay safe. The arguments you make comparing the flu to this virus are asinine at best. We don't have familiarity with this virus and we also don't have the level of "population immunity" to it. I have not had the flu in over 30-years probably because I am immune to most of its strains. I would never assume that with respect to Covid-19.

I had some respect for you last football season. Don't let it all go out the window. We have nothing else to say to each other on this matter. I am out. 

Thanks for your kind words regarding my opinions last football season. We'll just have to agree to disagree on the risks associated with playing football this season. Have a great day. I hope we have a football season to discuss this Fall.