Just because the Hawaii High School Athletic Association postponed “higher and moderate risk” sports to January, not everybody is convinced they’ll be ringing in the New Year with fall-time sports.
‘Iolani football coach and co-athletic director Wendell Look cautioned that even that proposed start date is not a lock because of the nature of a busy winter season and the possibility that the COVID-19 virus that is causing these changes isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
“January is the earliest that they can play, but there have been no set times on the schedule for these fall sports,” said Look, who is also the ILH’s football coordinator. “Football, cheerleading and girls volleyball, it is a TBA announcement. How it got put out is very confusing. It could possibly be played in January but how are you going to play football when there’s basketball, soccer and wrestling? We’re going to play, hopefully, sometime in the winter or spring.”
Football, girls volleyball and competitive cheer are the sports that will shift to January. Air riflery and bowling will remain in the fall season. The recent spike in cases and the announcement from local leaders that a 30-day lockdown could be on the horizon, forced the HHSAA’s hand.
“It has been difficult,” HHSAA Executive Director Chris Chun said.
Hawaii became the seventh state to postpone some or all fall sports to the winter or spring season. The blueprint for the new schedule isn’t clear.
“It is to be determined and evaluated,” Chun added.
Fans at state powerhouse Kahuku will have to save their raucous cheering for a few months, at least. But like many coaches and parents around the island-chain, the Kahuku head coach agrees with the delay.
“You know, as a football fan, we want football. We want to watch football, but as a coach, I’m glad they’re taking into consideration the health and safety of our players,” Kahuku coach Sterling Carvalho said. “That’s what we have to think about, the future and the safety of everybody in Hawaii with this pandemic going on. I already have a meeting set up with my players online to let them know. Kids are kids. Keeping their spirits up. Having a perspective of patience.”
Kapolei football coach Darren Hernandez is hopeful, but a bit worried. He sees the flu season as an added problem.
“Now you’re going to add in the flu season in the fall and winter,” Hernandez said. “If the coronavirus is still here, we could end up losing a whole year of sports. Unprecedented. Probably the first time since WWII.
“The thing that worries me is, if one school, one teacher or student (becomes infected), everything is going to shut down again, and that includes sports like air riflery. It’s just something we can’t get a handle on. We’re flying into this by the seat of our pants.”
Saint Louis coach Ron Lee had pushed for a postponement since the pandemic began.
“That’s good news. The biggest thing we need to do, we all need to put our heads together. Coaches, trainers, doctors. We need to make a plan,” Lee said. “We need to know how to keep our guidelines and protocol in training, in conditioning, something that everybody follows. Now, at least we have a date and we can plan how to protect the kids, protect everybody.”
Leonard Lau, a former University of Hawaii player and new interim coach at Punahou, saw the practicality of delaying football.
“I feel at this point, how things are going in our community, I support the decision. At the high school level, we have limited resources as far as testing. This will give us more time to plan and prepare,” he said.
