Gallatin News
GALLATIN WEATHER

Football, girls soccer teams await word on practices, season




Greenbrier quarterbacks Braxton Laney (left) and Brogan Harden (right) look for receivers during workouts on Wednesday, June 17.FILE/RUSSELL VANNOZZI

Greenbrier quarterbacks Braxton Laney (left) and Brogan Harden (right) look for receivers during workouts on Wednesday, June 17.FILE/RUSSELL VANNOZZI

Springfield football coach Dustin Wilson has a new tactic for getting his field back in pristine shape. It’s called fraise mowing, which removes the thatch and organic matter that builds on a turf surface.

“It’s just maintenance,” he said. “You change the oil in a car every so many miles and sometimes you have to do that with a field.”

It remains to be seen when that luscious green grass can be used for games again.

Contact sports like football and girls soccer are on hold until Gov. Bill Lee says otherwise. His current emergency declaration limiting contact runs through Aug. 29, though the TSSAA is currently working with Lee’s office to figure out a fall sports plan.

During a call with community newspaper reporters from the Tennessee Press Association on Monday, July 13, Lee expressed optimism that both sports could be played this fall amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We fully expect football and soccer to be a part of the landscape,” Lee said. “We are working with the TSSAA and are working aggressively with them…we asked them to give us what they believe is the safe guidance to practice and to play football and soccer. And we wanted to make certain that those recommendations by them fit within the broad guidelines that we have going forward.”

Football and girls teams can still hold conditioning workouts and individual drills. But will their seasons start on time, be delayed or get canceled entirely? Those questions are still unanswered.

“I think the hardest thing is not knowing anything,” White House girls soccer coach Mike Felzien said. “The governor says he sees us and football in the ‘landscape’ of reopening, but how does that look? I don’t know.”

Wilson said he is hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. He doesn’t see the viability of a spring season, which may force athletes to choose between sports. That could be an issue across Robertson County, where four of the five high schools have less than 1,000 students. White House is in the same boat.  

“I think (playing football in) the spring is just not realistic,” Wilson said. “I don’t think kids can handle back-to-back seasons like that. You’d want to do it for the seniors, but there’s so many other things that would be affected by it.”

Greenbrier football coach John Elmore agreed with Wilson. Many of his players are also members of the baseball, basketball, soccer, track or wrestling teams.

“We only have so many athletes that we can share,” Elmore said. “I want them to be involved in as much as they can be and enjoy their high school experience. You’re not even guaranteed four (full seasons) anymore.”

More importantly, Wilson said student health must be the top priority. Even if that means putting football on the back burner – an especially harsh thought for a Springfield program coming off two Class 4A state championship appearances in the last three seasons.

“We obviously want the kids to be alright – that’s the No. 1 concern,” he said. “If not playing football is a way to keep them safe, we’re just going to have to figure a way to tell everyone that and move on. (But) it’s tough to hear that or even think about it.”

Elmore also has his concerns. The sport already deals with its share of injuries and heat-related illnesses, and now it will attempt to navigate playing through a pandemic for the first time since the Spanish Flu (H1N1) ravaged the country in 1918.

“It’s something that you worry about,” Elmore said. “I worry about the guys anyway. With the heat and things like that, you’re constantly thinking about it. This (virus) is a new thing to deal with.”

However, all four coaches interviewed for this story expressed their desire to play football and girls soccer provided that clear protocols are put in place, including instructions for how to handle inevitable positive cases that may stem from competition, households, in-person classes or elsewhere.

“We’re hopeful that we’re going to be playing ball this fall, whatever that looks like,” White House Heritage girls soccer coach Mark Redferrin said. “Whether the season gets extended or abbreviated or pushed back a few weeks. We just want the opportunity to go out and play.”

Added Felzien: “I personally would like to see us give it a shot and see how it goes, but I think that’s above my pay grade. I’ll defer that to Gov. Lee.”

More clarity on the fall sports calendar could be coming as soon as this week. The TSSAA was set for a Board of Control executive session meeting on Monday, July 20 to get legal advice from its attorneys. The Board of Control will also meet on Wednesday, but it’s not clear when any decisions will be made.

Football players like East Robertson junior receiver Taylor Groves are staying optimistic for now.

“I believe we’ll have (a season),” Groves said. “I think it might be a little while, but I truly believe we’ll have one.”

Whether the games are played in August, delayed or canceled, area coaches said they would try to help their teams keep the situation in perspective.

“There’s a million different possibilities that you can think of and none of them are good,” Redferrin said. “Nobody’s going to be happy with (schedule changes).

“One thing I’ve learned since March is that you have to be flexible and roll with the punches.”

Jason Reynolds contributed.

Leave a Reply