The calendar’s not the only thing different about this football season.
The roar of the crowd will be a lot quieter, traveling teams will be a little smaller, schedules will be a much shorter — but at least they’ve found a way to play.
Both Agawam and West Springfield are participating in the state’s “Fall II” season for a handful of sports, including football, which began practices this week and will play a shortened season of five or six games between March 19 and the end of April.
“The enthusiasm for athletics is definitely high,” said David Stratton, athletic director at Agawam High School. “They’re very, very thankful they’re able to do anything. They seem to be grateful to be able to take part. I know I’m grateful, believe me.”
As in other sports, where the need to minimize travel times has jumbled the usual conference alignments, Agawam and West Springfield will play most of their games in a five-team “bubble.” The other three participants are Amherst, East Longmeadow and Longmeadow. Stratton said he expects one or two non-bubble games to be assigned by Pioneer Valley Interscholastic Athletic Conference schedulers.
The Brownies and the Terriers will get a chance to renew their longstanding football rivalry, but fans won’t be able to fill West Springfield’s Clark Field, this year’s host, as they normally would on Thanksgiving. The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association follows guidelines from the state Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, which allow just two adult spectators per athlete. For Fall II, the guidelines have been relaxed to allow athletes’ siblings to attend, as well. Stratton noted that although the governor’s office recently announced that indoor sports venues could open at 50 percent capacity, the EEA rules have not yet changed.
“It could change before we begin playing,” Stratton said. “When new guidance comes out, we adjust to the new guidance.”
Agawam’s Harmon A. Smith Stadium can seat 1,500 on its permanent stands alone, and Stratton said he would welcome visiting athletes’ parents and siblings, if the visiting team’s local rules allow it. West Springfield High School Athletic Director Glenn Doulette said he will determine his attendance policy with the town’s Board of Health before games begin.
Both Doulette and Stratton said they hope declining infection rates will eventually let them welcome more students, and athletes’ extended families, into the stands. They added that attendance policies could change on a game-to-game basis, in order to accommodate restrictions set by the visiting team’s public health officials.
To minimize athletes’ exposure on the sidelines and on bus trips, visiting teams are only allowed to bring 40 athletes to each game. Doulette said West Springfield will bring only the players with a reasonable chance of playing in the game. Halftime will be shortened to just 10 minutes.
Starting the football season in late winter brings some weather-related challenges, Doulette said. Instead of worrying about the sun and heat of August, coaches are having to modify their preseason practices to protect athletes from freezing, and closely monitor their physical distancing to prevent an isolated COVID-19 infection from sidelining the entire team.
Stratton said the colder temperatures of March and April mean games will likely be played in daylight, either on Friday afternoons or during the day on Saturday.
The season has to wrap up by April 28 so that practices for the spring sports season can start on time. That means no postseason games or state championships in Fall II sports, Stratton said.
Football isn’t the only sport playing a Fall II schedule to make up for a skipped season. Both high schools’ indoor track teams will also compete in April — though in outdoor meets. Doulette said he expects the team to have five weeks of training, including this week, followed by about three outdoor dual meets in an ad-hoc league of four schools. There won’t be a regional indoor meet this year, nor any state meets.
Cheerleading teams from Agawam and West Springfield are also taking part in Fall II. Agawam will also sponsor unified basketball, a team that includes players with and without intellectual disabilities. Wrestling, ordinarily a winter sport, will be played in the spring season, if at all.
Stratton said he hopes spring teams will be able to play a full season, including state championships. Those teams saw their seasons canceled last year, when COVID-19 restrictions began.
Agawam School Committee members said they were glad to see the MIAA and local administrators find a way to give football, unified basketball, cheerleading and indoor track athletes a chance to compete this year, even if it is a shorter season with no chance at a championship.
“Any bit of normalcy is good,” said School Committee member and high school parent Wendy Rua. “The kids need this.”
Doulette said in West Springfield, he’s seen the positive effect that athletics has on his athletes, most of whom were in remote-only classrooms from the start of the school year until the end of February vacation, and only came to campus for fall or winter sports.
“I think that’s a lifeline for some of the kids,” Doulette said. “Just the ability to be with friends, do something they like, I think that was a great experience. It was all about winning and losing for these kids, but just being here, my motto was, every day we’re able to play was a win.”
"football" - Google News
March 04, 2021 at 07:12AM
https://ift.tt/3c0zz8h
Agawam, West Springfield high schools ready for start of football - MassLive.com
"football" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2ST7s35
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Agawam, West Springfield high schools ready for start of football - MassLive.com"
Posting Komentar