There might be football in Vail after all.Β
Cienega High School principal Kim Middleton announced Saturday evening a "plan forΒ continuing to move forward with our 2020-21 Cienega football season." Her letter to parents, which was posted to the school's social media feeds, came less than 48 hours after Bobcats coach Pat Nugent suspended all football activity until further notice, citing Pima County's recommendation that teams not play contact sports until COVID-19 cases decrease.
Middleton said Cienega will be implementing a three-step strategy to play:
β’ Cienega's football players will "bubbled" into groups and will not participate in on-campus learning;
β’ Players and coaches will take regular COVID-19 tests. The principal said she is "working on a process" to get it done;
β’ Families will be required to sign waivers for their children to play.
"We will follow our current football schedule and continue to compete against the schools whose districts are able to participate this season," Middleton said. "We have been authorized to begin full-contact practices and Coach Nugent will be in touch with families to share what his start date is for those practices."Β
More information on attendance for home games will be released to parents in the following weeks.Β
Nugent's decision to cancel football activities came after the Pima County Health Department recommended that football and other contact sports be put on hold until the the county's coronavirus rate falls to 10 or fewer positive cases per 100,000 residents. The county's benchmark is stricter than that of the Arizona Interscholastic Association, which is allowing schools to play if their communities have fewer than 75 cases per 100,000 residents.Β
Pima County currently has 54 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents. It would be close to impossible for the county to reach the PCHD's recommendations in time for Southern Arizona teams to have a full football season in concert with the rest of the state.
The decision on whether to play football this fall lies with district superintendents, though the health department is required to advise them. Health department officials and superintendents met Friday.
The Bobcats are scheduled to open their six-game schedule Oct. 30 against Canyon del Oro, but the date is subject to change.Β
