What will fall sports look like? Even KHSAA Commissioner Tackett doesn’t know at this point

During a press conference held Friday, Kentucky High School Athletic Association Commissioner Julian Tackett noted that while he is optimistic that we will be able to have some form of sports competition on the high school level in Kentucky for the fall sports lineup, he did make a statement to qualify his hopefulness.

“I just don’t think that 2020 in any sport is going to look like 2019,” Tackett said. “That’s probably the first thing we ought to get into our heads.”

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Kentucky back in early March, the winter sports season was cut short after just a few games had been played in the season ending Sweet 16 Girls’ State Tournament. The boys didn’t even get the opportunity to check into their motels for their tournament.

Next, spring sports was delayed, then shortened, then when it became clear that we weren’t going to be able to get together anytime soon, all of the seasons in the spring sports lineup – baseball, softball, tennis for Clinton County’s lineup – were canceled.

Now, with the cancellation of the traditional graduation ceremonies, thoughts are beginning to turn toward the start of the 2020-21 school year, and the next offering of high school sports – the fall sports season.

Football, golf, soccer, volleyball and cross country. Will there be any of those?

At Friday’s press conference, Tackett had hope that we will see something on the Kentucky high school level this fall, but he also noted that it’s going to be at least another month – sometime in mid to late June – before he and the board of control and the state government authorities can come together to begin to announce just what sports this fall might look like.

He talked about the ability to social distance in football stadiums and in gymnasiums for volleyball and he talked about even the possibility of some areas that had lower numbers of cases beginning some sports earlier than other regions. Abbreviated season schedules could come into play, with the most talked about likelihood being a delayed and shortened football season this fall.

Some sports, where players don’t necessarily have to be in close contact, namely golf, could get underway sooner than others.

Tackett recognizes that high school sports is important for the student athlete, as it is for the community.

Still, although getting back to some sort of normalcy is vital to us all, ensuring our health and safety to the highest degree is even more important, and that’s why we only have one chance to get this right.

Says here, it will be a guessing game, and we can only hope we make the right guess – for the wellbeing of everyone.

In the meantime – no sports at all stinks!