They will play: MHSA announces fall sports plans

As of Monday, there will be fall sports in Montana. Of course, in this time of the coronavirus pandemic, things can change day-to-day, hour-by-hour, but Monday afternoon, the Montana High School Association announced that fall sports will go an as scheduled around the Treasure State.

That announcement, however, does come with plenty of safeguards, safety guidelines and rules regarding COVID-19, as well as some differences to pretty much every sport - including football, volleyball, cross country, soccer, golf and cheer.

"The MHSA Executive Board believes the resumption of sports and other activities is crucial to the growth, development and mental and emotional wellness of our Montana youth," MHSA executive director Mark Beckman wrote in a press release. "We believe that the safety and well-being of our student activity participants is paramount."

The MHSA formed a five-tier system that will help schools navigate the fall sports season. The process utilized to come up with these directives, requirements and considerations included consultation with national, state and local experts from the CDC, NFHS Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (SMAC), the governor's directives, and state and local health departments, along with input from state activity associations across the country. For the return to fall activities, school's will follow these MHSA requirements along with the governor's directives and the directives from their local health departments.

"Once again, we believe that the safety and well-being of our student activity participants is paramount. These requirements, both general and activity specific, attempt to reduce the possibility of transmission of coronavirus for our student activity participants and for coaches, officials and fans of MHSA activities," the statement by Beckman read.

One of the immediate questions about fall sports was, do players and participants have to wear face coverings during comp0etitons? The answer to that according to Gov. Steve Bullocks's mask mandate is no. Sports and other types of physical exertion are exempt. However, the MHSA says in its statement that, schools will be required to STRICTLY ENFORCE the mask mandate where it is applicable.

The following is the full plan for a return to fall sports per the MHSA. Under Tier I guidelines, the fall season will begin on time, which is Aug. 13 for golf practice, followed by Aug. 14 for all other sports. The first date of competition for golf is Aug. 15, while Aug. 27 is the first date of competition for all other sports. If Montana were to move into Tier 2, that means the season would be interrupted, non-conference games canceled but little to no changes to the postseason. Tier 3 would be the season interrupted for a longer period of time, no non-conference games, conference season shortened, but no changes to postseason. Tier 4 would be a mid-season interruption, conference season shortened and postseason formats adjusted. Tier 5 would mean a long interruption to the season, allowing for only some games to be played in a round-robin format, as well as adjustments or possible cancellation of the postseason.

MHSA Return to Play Plan Under Tier 1

Football/Volleyball/Soccer

There will be no multi-team events (triangular, invitational tournaments, etc.) in the sports of football, soccer and volleyball. The status of allowing multi-teams events in relation to the current phase and restrictions in place later in the season will be reevaluated accordingly. Golf dual meets are recommended and encouraged.

Golf

Can have multiple team events (invitational meets with 3 or more schools present) meeting the following criteria: 1) no practice round or use of practice facilities, 2) shotgun starts are required with a maximum of 90 players on an 18-hole course and 45 players on a 9-hole course during multi-team events (one 5-some starting per hole), 4) the point of entry to the course is different to access their starting holes, and; 5) teams will play together (grouping by school), there will be no mixing of players by score. They cannot gather at the clubhouse before or after a meet. After the meet, teams must exit to their bus immediately and team and individual scores will be shared with each team.

Cross Country

Cross Country dual meets are recommended and encouraged. Cross Country can have multiple teams participate if the following restrictions are followed: 1) no more than 200 participants (or by the current governor's phase), 2) teams must remain in their own team staging area, 3) no more than 25 on the start line, 4) the next runners up will be placed in a corral before they start, 5) all runners must wear masks in the team staging area, corral and until they are called by the starter to the starting line, 6) once the race is completed individuals must immediately exit the finish line area and return to their team bus. There can be no gathering of teams after each race.

Fans

The attendance of fans at regular season contests will be determined by the school in consultation with their local health department authority. Schools may have to submit a plan for fan attendance to their local health department for approval.

General Requirements/Considerations

Workouts/practices should be conducted in "pods"/"bubbles" of participants with same players working out together to limit overall exposure.

Before, during and after the contest, players, coaches and administration should wash and sanitize their hands as often as possible.

No out-of-state competition or teams traveling from out of state for competition, unless it is in a dual format and approved by the MHSA executive director.

Always maintain social distancing of 6 feet while on the field/court of play when possible.

Everyone must have their own beverage container that is not shared. Safe handling practices should be adhered during hydration, which includes refilling, retrieval and identification of water source.

Time-outs (if applicable) may be extended to a maximum of two minutes in length for safe hydration practices. Social distancing requirements must always be followed.

Cloth facial coverings are allowed for players, coaches and officials. Facial coverings must be a single solid color and unadorned. Face coverings must be worn per the governor's directive.

Gloves are permissible for all players, coaches and officials.

The ball should be cleaned and sanitized throughout the contest/event as recommended by the ball manufacturer.

Administrators must limit the number of non-essential personnel who are on the field/player surface area throughout the contest.

Attendance at MHSA events is dependent on host site and local health department guidelines and restrictions.

A family's role in maintaining safety guidelines for themselves and others is very important. Make sure your child and immediate household members are free from illness before participating in practice and competition (if there is doubt stay home). Provide personal items for your child and clearly label them.

*During all tiers - Schools must follow the governor's phasedirectives, state and local health department directives regarding fan attendance (limits, social distancing, enforce the mask requirement, facility cleaning, sanitizing, etc.), travel requirements (bus maximum numbers and mask wearing, etc.) and MHSA sport specific requirements.

*Schools and teams in communities that follow the governor's phase, state and local health department directives and MHSA's current tier and sport specific requirements will be allowed to participate.

*Schools could print an "at your own risk" statement on every ticket sold for contests.

*Fan attendance - local health department requirements will differ, and schools need to consult their local health authority and be ready to submit a plan for approval if required. Schools/districts/classifications will have to determine number of tickets they will provide to the visiting team per allowed maximum attendance.

*Some schools may experience quarantines before or during a season - those scheduled contests will be considered "no contest." If a school refuses to go to a location where contests are allowed it will be considered a forfeit. Districts/divisions/classifications will be responsible for determining post season seeding criteria taking into consideration these situations.

*Depending on teams available, post season formats may be adjusted according to those teams able to participate. Alternate formats - playoffs instead of central sites/single loss events/reduced qualifiers/end of season round robin play with remaining teams.