Tomyn isn’t ready to cancel playoffs
FHSAA executive well-aware that time is running out, but he’s ‘trying to keep hope alive’
The Florida High School Athletic Association announced Tuesday it is considering extending its calendar through June 30 to keep in play the possibility that spring sports playoffs can be staged.
The FHSAA statement came after Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Department of Education announced a new order that schools be closed to students through May 1 and not reopen until Monday, May 4, at the earliest.
The FHSAA, which postponed all spring playoffs and meetings several weeks ago, again stopped short of canceling postseason play. Instead it stated that it will continue to consider reviving spring sports, “pending schools are back in session and afforded the opportunity to resume activities after May 3 by federal, state and local authorities.”
“We’re not able to sit in the same room, but my staff and I are talking via Zoom [video conferencing] about this every morning,” FHSAA executive director George Tomyn said in a phone interview with the Orlando Sentinel after the statement was released. “We spent a lot of time talking about that June 30 date. Our staff can be creative and come up with some ideas. But I don’t know whether schools or school districts will permit their coaches to continue. I simply do not know that.”
Since schools were shut down three
weeks ago the association has received numerous messages from athletes and coaches asking it to not pull the plug on spring sports until there is no hope left for a continuation of play.
“We’re trying to keep hope alive here,” Tomyn said. “But at the same time, we don’t want to put false hopes on anyone. Quite honestly, I’m not sure how realistic it is to think about resuming play in May or June given what we’re hearing about the epidemic and what that might look like in the coming weeks.”
Some coaches have suggested that teams could move directly to district tournament mode after a few practice sessions.
“There has to be some kind of acclimatization period,” Tomyn said. “We simply can’t put students on the court or on the field for a competition on the day they come back.”
As originally scheduled, the final FHSAA playing date was to be Wednesday, May 27, the last day of the state baseball tournament.
Tuesday’s FHSAA statement included this passage: “The FHSAA does understand the hardships caused by COVID-19 and the inability to play spring sports.
“If we are not able to continue spring sports, the FHSAA is working diligently to create a plan regarding additional eligibility for students who have not been able to participate in spring sports.”
Questions about whether the FHSAA would grant an extra season of athletic eligibility for students who opt to repeat their current grade level in the 2020-21 school year have also swirled since Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that retainment is an option.
Before the coronavirus changed everything, district tournaments were scheduled to begin this week for water polo teams. The other spring postseason starts would have been in April, which is no longer available for extracurricular activities with schools closed.
The other spring sports are baseball, softball, lacrosse, tennis, boys volleyball, boys weightlifting, girls flag football and track and field.
A number of head football coaches contacted by the Sentinel on Monday expressed doubt that spring practices for that sport will be allowed.
Spring football was scheduled to begin Monday, April 27. Tuesday’s
FHSAA announcement did not mention spring football practice.
The last day of school for students in Orlando area counties was to be May 27 for Orange and Seminole; May 28 for Osceola; and May 29 for Lake and Volusia. School for seniors would end several weeks before those dates unless the districts revise their academic calendars.
The FHSAA governs high school sports for all Florida public schools and the great majority of the state’s private schools.