Decision affecting fate of SC high school sports seasons delayed. Here’s what’s next
A decision that will determine the fate of this year’s South Carolina high school sports calendar has been delayed and won’t be made for at least three weeks.
The South Carolina High School League’s appellate panel decided to not vote Wednesday on Lexington County’s appeal for the state to use its high school sports plan. Another appellate panel meeting is set for 11 a.m. Aug. 10.
“We weren’t required to make a decision just because we met,” panel member Otis Rawl said.
SCHSL commissioner Jerome Singleton, speaking with reporters after the meeting, said he was disappointed a decision could not be reached because of the uncertainty it creates for schools.
“It makes it tough to move forward not knowing what direction we’re going,” Singleton said. “I definitely think they would have preferred to know something today.
“Our member schools want to know what to expect. Until we get something new, let’s go with what we have. If there is a reason to adjust, let it not be because we are waiting on another plan.”
Lexington’s plan would shift football season to early January and move traditional spring sports such as baseball, softball and girls lacrosse to the fall. That plan was voted down 16-1 at last week’s S.C. High School League Executive Committee meeting.
The committee last week approved the High School League’s plan for shorter fall sports seasons that start a few weeks later than normal. For now, the state’s schools will continue to operate under the SCHSL plan that has teams starting practices Aug. 17 with competitions beginning in September.
That will remain the case unless the appellate panel at its newly scheduled Aug. 10 meeting opts to adopt the Lexington plan instead. The panel has the authority to be the final say in the matter. One member of each of the seven congressional districts in the state is represented on the appellate panel.
Wednesday’s meeting lasted more than two hours and was heated at times between remarks from panel members, Lexington 1 and the SCHSL.
Rawl said the appellate panel wasn’t provided copies of Lexington’s plan or the SCHSL’s proposal and couldn’t couldn’t make the best decision. Panel members Bob Davis and Raleigh King each motioned to make a decision Wednesday, but the rest of the panel didn’t see it that way. King was the lone member who voted against moving the vote to Aug. 10.
Singleton said appellate panel members were provided information going into the meeting and that if they felt they didn’t have everything then “it was on him.”
Lexington 1 officials touted their plan as the safest because lower-risk sports would be played first and the likelihood of them getting shut down would be less likely. They felt their plan gives all athletes the best way of having as normal of a season as possible.
“When you think about uncertainty, start with sports we know for a fact we can do with little modification and done in safe fashion,” Lexington 1 Superintendent Greg Little said.
Attorney Becky Laffitte, which represented the SCHSL, took exception to any perception that the league has not taken safety into consideration with its plan and called that notion “disturbing.” She also pointed out a lack of documentation from Lexington’s side to show the plan has the backing throughout the state.
Lexington 1 athletic director David Bennett said they had the approval of the state’s football and cheerleading coaches as well as the state’s athletic trainers but nothing was shown in writing. But the state’s baseball and softball, soccer and volleyball coaches said this week they were in favor for the league’s plan that was approved last week and to leave the calendar that way it was.
“Neither one of these plans are perfect. I doubt any fall sports, regardless of what the sport is, starts on Aug. 17,” appellate panel chairman Bill McCall said.
McCall and other parties involved Wednesday stressed the importance of safety of the athletes and coaches with either plan. But the uncertainty of the coronavirus, which shut down schools in March, remains the biggest factor for if and when sports can happen in South Carolina this fall.
The parties pointed out there’s no guarantee COVID-19 conditions will be better in a few weeks when the appellate panel meets again. Singleton said there is no magic number to determine when it would be deemed safe no matter what plan gets approved.
“It’s very much a moving target,” Singleton said. “I talk to the CDC (Center for Disease Control) twice a week. I talk with the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee at least once a week. I’m in contact with the governor’s office every two weeks. I talk with other state executive directors about their processes, their decisions, the information they’re getting. I try to get a feel for what the surroundings are.
“And believe me, if we knew we could delay things for two months and everybody would be safe, I’d do that in a minute. In a minute. But we don’t know that, and nobody does.”
SCISA pushes back start of football season
The South Carolina Independent Schools Association announced Wednesday that it will push back the start of the football season because of COVID-19.
The first game will be Aug. 28 instead of planned date of Aug. 20.
The start of fall practices was moved from July 30 to Aug. 2 (helmets only for football). Practices with helmet and shoulder pads are Aug. 10; the first full pads practices were shifted to Aug. 17. Cross country, golf, tennis and volleyball can begin games Aug. 17.
Fans will be able to attend games, according to the release.
“Thank you for how well summer workouts have gone. We have not experienced flare-ups or clusters and when a positive case has occurred you have been prepared and addressed it appropriately and not panicked,” SCISA Athletic Director Mike Fanning said in a release.
This story was originally published July 22, 2020 at 1:33 PM.
