Quandary!
That word sums up the near future in sports, from middle school through all of the professional ranks.
Tentative might be another good word.
Where do we go from here, a function of the COVID-19 situation in which professional teams start the trek to play in a season with knowledge that players could be missing for either short stretches or, worse, a long stretch of time? Men’s soccer teams in the professional tournament at Walt Disney World in Florida, have canceled games because too many players tested positive for COVID-19.
Many players are a bit nervous, which is understandable, including players, coaches, and managers, for the Chicago pro baseball teams which will begin preseason games Sunday (see Sports Lineup below).
Will there be a college football season? Outside of high school girls tennis in the Fall season, will there be competition? Will there be school classes? That is to be determined. Quandary!
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) will not, in all likelihood, authorize (light) touch football to replace the standard tackle version.
Last week the IHSA, in an optimistic move, issued the football schedule for the Fall season. One note is that in week one, of the seven Aurora teams, six would be playing at home Friday, Aug. 28. Only Metea Valley would be on the road, at Geneva High School. There is a full schedule of likely exciting non-conference games with interesting matches, if schools would be in session (See page 2). It is only six weeks away, and excitement could be building, however, if only…creeps into the mindset with health paramount over games, or, even classes. Quandary!
The IHSA this week, July 14, said it will defer to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), State Board of Education (ISBE), and governor JB Pritzker’s plan in Return to Play guidelines. “We still believe there is a path to conducting high school athletics in the Fall,” IHSA executive director Craig Anderson said. “It’s important that we allow IDPH, ISBE, and the governor’s office to take the lead.”
Chicago Blackhawks hockey will be alive, and, hopefully, well, in the creative National Hockey League playoff system which will begin August 1. There are two levels of play and two sites. The Blackhawks will play Edmonton in the Western Conference at Edmonton. The Eastern Conference games will be in Toronto, which has the most ice rinks in the world.