Though there’s still no clear answer on when high school sports will return, there are a few ideas currently under review by the FHSAA and its advisory committees.
Three plans to bring back sports have been proposed and one will likely be adopted by the board in its upcoming meeting. The FHSAA sent one document outlining each option and one three-page document strictly related to football to advisory committee members last week. Any of the options outlined in the former document could be modified before the board votes.
Option 1 of the return-to-play document is simple: keep things are they currently are. Practice would still start on Aug. 24, the date the board voted on in its last meeting, and the first day of regular-season play would be Sept. 7. Everything from that date on would remain exactly the same as it was already scheduled, though schools can reschedule contests if need be and games missed because of the calendar change will be excused if schools don’t make them up. Winter and spring sports are not affected.
In this option, football teams must commit to the state series by Oct. 12 if they wish to participate and classes will be redrawn after that date. Other than Class 1A Rural, every other class will be determined by population sizes. The state series would begin with a Nov. 13 play-in and end with state finals played between Dec. 10 and 19. Teams that do not opt in to the state series can schedule games until Dec. 5. There are no district champions, no at-large bids and no RPI. Teams who opt in to the state series can qualify for a playoff spot and a blind draw replaces rankings in terms of deciding seeding. Play-in games will occur if more than 16 teams make the playoffs in classes 5A-8A, in which Durant, Plant City and Strawberry Crest would likely find themselves, and if more than eight teams make it in classes 2A-4A.
Option 2 does not give a concrete return date for practices — “After August” is all that’s listed on the document — and the regular season would start two weeks after practices resume. The regular season would end Nov. 28 and schools can either keep their scheduled games or reschedule. Tournament play would run from Nov. 30 through Dec. 12. Any tournaments would be at the local or regional level, however, as Option 2 eliminates the state series altogether. Winter and spring sports are not affected.
Option 3 would affect every sport in every season and, in some cases, move them around (golf and swimming move to the spring and tennis moves to winter). The sports calendar would run from Nov. 30 through June 26, 2021, and each regular season would last for five weeks. The breakdown looks like this:
FALL 2020
Sports (played in Plant City area): girls volleyball, cross country, football
Practices start: Nov. 30
Regular season start: Dec. 14
Regular season end: Jan. 23, 2021
WINTER 2020
Sports (played in Plant City area): basketball, cheerleading, soccer, wrestling, tennis
Practices start: Feb. 15, 2021
Regular season start: Mar. 1, 2021
Regular season end: Apr. 3, 2021
SPRING 2020
Sports (played in Plant City area): baseball, softball, flag football, lacrosse, track and field
Practices start: Apr. 26, 2021
Regular season start: May 10, 2021
Regular season end: June 12, 2021
This option does retain state series tournaments under the current format or with “adjustments from advisory committees/staff.”
The next FHSAA Board of Directors meeting is scheduled for Aug. 14.