WJFL schedule will change again as schools opt out
Although there has yet to be an official announcement, it appears Trenton High may very well join the list of teams that will not be playing football this fall.
At least that’s where things stood as of Tuesday afternoon after efforts to get a confirmation from the Trenton School District’s superintendent’s office failed to produce a response.
Earlier in the week, Trenton High Athletic Director Sharron Grady had referred all questions about the status of the football team’s season to the district’s administration offices.
One thing that can be confirmed, however, is Trenton has contacted West Jersey Football League officials to let them know the football team will sit out this year because of concerns over the coronavirus pandemic, according to Steinert athletic director Steve Gazdek, who is part of the WJFL’s scheduling committee.
As was previously reported, the West Windsor School District has already contacted the WJFL to inform its football team will not be competing this upcoming season. New Egypt has also told the WJFL it is sitting out this football season.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy said on Monday he is leaving the status of fall sports up to the NJSIAA. For its part, the NJSIAA currently plans to have an abbreviated fall sports season with a later start than usual.
The thing to remember, however, is no matter what the governor or NJSIAA may say it’s a district’s school board that still has the power to shut down its athletic programs.
As such, with many school boards due to hold their monthly meetings next week, it’s entirely possible the number of non-participating football teams could grow shortly.
Because of a season with a reduced number of games and the desire to cut down on traveling, the WJFL released new football schedules last month. The revamped schedules are based on geography, as opposed to playing teams in your own WJFL Division.
Obviously, the schedules for most of the Mercer County teams will again have to be adjusted to make up for the vacancies created by Trenton and West Windsor.
“We will probably wait until the end of the month to see if anyone else decides not to play,” said Gazdek of the timetable to again redo the schedules. “We will know a lot more after the school boards meet next week.”