The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Schools frustrated by OHSAA
Rumors of a forthcoming announcement from the Ohio High School Athletic Association swirled July 30 before some athletic personnel in the area learned a communication was on its way the following day.
On the eve of the official start of the fall season, athletic directors, coaches, student-athletes and most anyone who follows high school sports around the state hoped to receive clarity on what exactly they should do when Aug. 1 arrived.
A memo from the OHSAA indeed arrived the afternoon of July 31, a document which essentially provided more of the same nebulous “instruction” schools across Ohio have received since almost the beginning of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
If anything, the statement only moved the goalposts back to Sept. 4 for an official decision on the fall season to be made.
Schools all over Ohio have looked to the OHSAA for leadership and direction since the remaining winter tournaments were suspended, and ultimately canceled as was the entire spring season.
Athletic directors, coaches, student-athletes have little to show for that faith beyond the OHSAA telling them “figure it out yourself.”
A glaring lack of leadership is astounding and leaves those responsible for staging high school athletics justifiably frustrated.
During the summer, it appeared the OHSAA continued to kick the ball down the road hoping Governor Mike DeWine or someone from the state government would make a decision so they didn’t have to be the villain in the event that entailed postponing or canceling the season. Meanwhile, no one on that end of the process deigned to comment or provide insight on what they want to see happen within high school sports.
A responsibility of leadership is to make the right choice even if it isn’t popular.
That’s not to advocate for a postponement or even to say the season should go on as planned full bore. Wherever the best path forward lies, for better or worse, the
OHSAA needed to identify and communicate clearly how its member schools should approach the fall.
Moreover, the timing of a survey sent to member schools earlier this week indicates the OHSAA didn’t begin preparing to evaluate options for the fall until this week.
Based on the rudimentary nature of the questions, the survey easily could’ve been sent out in late May or the beginning of June to serve as a foundation to help the body chart its course in preparation for the 2020-21 school year. It remains to be seen what purpose the data collected three days before the start of the fall will serve so late in the process.
Now, for the most part, schools are almost set up to fail as they make decisions on their own. A community with a majority concerned about the risk presented by participation won’t be satisfied if a school chooses to play, and a community with those eager to start the season will be equally displeased by a decision to start as planned.
Recent recommendations by county health boards spurred school districts to temporarily suspend athletics. Without a common direction put forth by the OHSAA, numerous schools are making different decisions which will hold complications for others.
For example, as Mayfield High School announced it will move to virtual learning for the first nine weeks of the school year, the Wildcats also postponed their athletic programs. What does that mean for the rest of the schools on their schedule and in the Western Reserve Conference? Are they supposed to find new opponents to fill those holes weeks away from the start of competition? And how valid would a conference championship — especially in football — be in the event schools are missing from play that season?
Down the line, how would playoffs even begin to be constructed including teams that did not participate in a month of games?
On the west side, Lorain is the only member of the Lake Erie League that is not located in Cuyahoga County. Shaker Heights and Garfield Heights already announced the suspension of their athletic programs. Cleveland.com reported Cleveland Heights is holding out hope to play. Maple Heights, Bedford and Warrensville Heights will likely fall in line with the recommendation from the Cuyahoga County Board of Health and do the same as Shaker and Garfield, so where does that leave Lorain?
To be clear, that isn’t the fault of any school that holds off on sports for the time being. The culpability lies squarely with the OHSAA.
Adding to such confusion, cross country remains designated a contact sport when the National Federation of State High School Associations — a body whose lead the OHSAA typically follows — identified it as a low-risk activity in its document detailing guidance for schools resuming athletic activities all the way back in May.
Atop concerns regarding how schools are supposed to proceed entering the fall, many remain puzzled by executive director Jerry Snodgrass’ abrupt termination at the beginning of July. Regardless of circumstances, the energy required to find his replacement takes away from the monumental effort necessary to prepare for a fall season in an unprecedented time and speaks further to the apparent dysfunction in the state’s athletic governing body.
No one-size-fits-all solution exists for a constituency as vast and diverse as the OHSAA’s member schools. That doesn’t mean they should be left to fend for themselves.
The overarching sentiment shared by many I’ve spoken to in recent days was best encapsulated by one student-athlete within the area.
“There have been no updates. I just want someone to make a decision.”