Season begins in Alabama in test of virus precautions
THORSBY, ALA. » It’s mostly quiet in the Alabama farming community of Thorsby aside from trucks and trains that rumble through bound for someplace larger. Remembering directions to the town’s football stadium isn’t hard; there aren’t that many roads to take or turns to miss along the way.
It’s there, on Susan Bentley Field, that the Thorsby Rebels took on rival Jemison High School on Thursday night in their first game of the season. Prep football is returning in a high-stakes test of whether players can crash into each other, fans can scream and bands can play without worsening the coronavirus pandemic.
The mayor, who volunteers as a sideline official, is leery yet hopeful the town can avoid a virus outbreak.
The game began with Thorsby, in maroon uniforms, kicking off to Jemison in white. A big cheer went up when Jemison scored a touchdown on its first possession. Anyone entering the stadium was supposed to wear a face covering, but many didn’t.
Others donned masks just outside the chainlink fence and took them off once inside. Hundreds of people filled concrete bleachers, and dozens more stood along the fence that ringed the field. Some family groups were spread out, and few people wore masks.
Wearing a clear shield over her face, Carolyn Endress tilted her head back to take a photo of one of her two grandchildren who play in Jemison’s marching band. She said it was good to have football back.
“I wish it was under better conditions though,” she said.
While school and athletics officials said they were taking multiple precautions as dozens of games kick off across Alabama on Thursday night and Friday, some teams already have canceled games after players or coaches were infected during summer practice.
Steve Savarese, executive director of the Alabama High School Athletic Association, said the road to the first game was a challenge.
“I’m just excited to watch our students, our coaches and administrators, spectators ... take an escape from the health challenges we all are facing and just enjoying life again,” he told a news conference recently.
The coronavirus has infected more than 106,000 people in Alabama and killed at least 1,876, and reminders of the toll will be everywhere. Tape covers seats at some stadiums to keep fans spread out; concessions options are limited in places and bands and cheerleaders may not travel to away games.
While schools in Utah already have staged games, 16 states including California, Illinois and Michigan are not playing prep football at all this fall, according to the National Federations of State High School Associations. Others are playing with altered schedules or new pandemic rules.
In rural Chilton County at Thorsby, fans were supposed to wear a mask to enter and stay at least 6 feet (2 meters) apart once inside the gate. Thorsby only has five police and school staffs are small, leaving personal responsibility as the main enforcer.
The schools are in neighboring farming towns that lie along U.S. 31 about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Birmingham, and Clements expected paid attendance of at least 1,000 people, the equivalent of about half of Thorsby’s population.
Thorsby coach Daryl Davis said the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 has yet to show up among his players, and hopes it stays that way. “We’ve been fortunate,” he said.