UIL updates workout guidelines for Texas schools

TEXARKANA, Texas – The University Interscholastic League issued a memo to every public school athletic director on Wednesday to update guidelines and regulations for summer strength and conditioning workouts.

Face masks must be worn by student-athletes, staff and visitors when entering or leaving facilities and practice areas, and they are required to be worn “when not actively exercising,” according to the memo. Schools are currently on a two-week break from summer workouts following the July 4 holiday weekend and may resume workouts and practices July 13.

“Everybody wants to have high school sports, and I think everybody sees that these activities are good for kids physically, mentally and emotionally,” Atlanta athletic director and head football coach Matt McClure said. “But there are a lot of precautions we need to take to ensure their safety, and we need to take them serious.

“The analogy I used was when they started enforcing the law to wear seat belts; everybody hated that for a while. After some time, it just becomes a habit. Obviously, this isn’t the way we’ve always done it, but right now we’re going to have to adapt.”

Students may also access locker rooms and engage in drills that involve one or more students on offense against one or more students on defense on July 13.

Previous protocols involving social distancing, pre-screening staff and students for COVID-19, and disinfecting and maintaining only 50 percent of available capacity of facilities remain in place, in accordance with the state regulations. “We just need to take it one step at a time, and the biggest step, right now, is to go these next three weeks – before volleyball, football, cheerleading and cross country kickoff – to acclimate and get their bodies ready for their upcoming season,” Texas High athletic director and head football coach Gerry Stanford said. “We’re not looking past that. The UIL has given us guidelines for these three weeks, and so we’re going to live with

in these guidelines within these three weeks. There’s a strong possibility that these guidelines will change once we get to Aug. 3, one way or another. Right now, we’re not as concerned about Friday nights as we are these next three weeks.

“When we started back with our summer workouts, it took us about a week to get our feet underneath us, as far as the social distancing and all kids and coaches are going to disinfect everything that we use immediately after use. We had a good solid set of weeks (in June) of workouts. When we come back, the biggest change will be how they enter in and leave a facility.”

The memo stated that the guidance is in effect until the first day of instruction (at the school) or the

start of in-season activities, whichever is earlier.

“The biggest thing I got out of the whole memo was the first three words, ‘At this time,’ which means next week it may change,” McClure said. “High school coaches and teachers are the best at adapting, changing, monitoring and adjusting. It’s just going to be a challenge for the coaches and the kids as we move forward.”