SportsWestTN

It does remove some importance. Either teams are going to be focused on winning State or TOC. Can't focus and expend maximum effort to do both. In a vacuum, a TOC would be a great idea, especially for fans; but in practice, there is a lot you have to take into account physically and mentally. It is a grind to make a deep playoff run, let alone win state. It wouldn't remove all the importance of winning state. That would obviously still be an accomplishment. But, it would no longer be the penultimate achievement, as it should. The only way I'd ever see having a single champion in the state would be to get rid of classifications, like KY. That won't happen, as we are only adding more. Too many teams would be mad. TSSAA wouldn't make extra money from it. No incentive.

Also per the Tennessean:

Order extended, but opened up to Grandparents and Teachers now. Still not cheerleaders or dance. Restriction says 1/3rd capacity, but exact restrictions on tickets vary by school. Order is extended into the start of the playoffs. Glad they opened things up a little bit, but still seems like too many restrictions. I don't like that cheer/dance aren't allowed in and other students can't come support. I'm interested to see how many tickets schools start allocating per player. Opening up who can attend doesn't mean much if each kid still only gets 2-4 tickets. I've talked to a lot of families that have 3+ kids who have been very upset that they've had to pick which parent could attend games, and who had to stay home with the extra kids.

Yes, but like I said, one of the benefits of winning a state title is finishing as one of the only teams in the state that gets to end their season, sometimes careers with a win. Something special about finishing your year on a high. By adding an extra tournament, you lose that, unless you win that "Tournament of Champions".

This used to be the system in a lot of places where you played with no classes. One state champion for the entire state. Basketball is definitely more conducive to having everyone in the same class than other sports (ie. Football). However, there is a reason why TN has five, soon to be six classifications. People like competing against schools their size, and having a more reasonable chance to win a title. It isn't to say small schools can't be as good, just a lower probability of it. That being said, I think we have too many classifications in most sports. Yet, I wouldn't be in favor of an end of the year tournament that pitted all the champs against each other. Season is long enough as it is. Plus, ending your season with a state title win is about as sweet as it gets. I wouldn't want to then have to turn around and try and earn some additional title, and potential finish with a loss instead.

Today's the 18th. I'm sure we won't hear anything from TSSAA until governor announces if order is extended or will expire. Timetable has been: hear from the governor's office, then hear from TSSAA a day or two later. Might see things open back up later in the week/weekend, but won't expect a change for another couple days.

It was just to help pull numbers out of the gym. Cheerleaders/Dance are another 10-20 kids, plus all of their families. I don't agree with them doing it, but that's why they did it. Evidently, Childress said something at a meeting this week about trying to fight to get Cheer/Dance back into games. They are at the mercy of the governor's office, it seems. Hopefully when it expires they can negotiate getting them back in, if not more people.

AA in West TN, right now, looks like South Side and Westview's to lose. I haven't seen anyone in South Side's district that can compete with them; and if Dyersburg can't upset Westview, I'd say the same for them as well. Would make for a fun region championship game, though.

As much as I'd like to blame the TSSAA for that, you can place the blame of that on the governor's office. TSSAA didn't curtail Cheerleaders/Dance, they did. (Note: I have missed having cheerleaders at games. Their cheering helps drown out parent's yelling and awkward silence in the gym.) It is hard to tell how much of this has all been driven down from the State. TSSAA might not have had really any say in it. The TSSAA also didn't put the restriction on number of tickets, instead the types of people that could attend. Individual schools are left to set rulings on specific numbers. At the end of the day, it is still a mess. I hope when the Executive Order expires, they loosen restrictions a bit. I don't think they were the cause of the COVID spike to start with, so I don't think going back will change much.

It is. And different schools are allowing different ticket amounts.

I'd assume it is because they have to draw the line at some point. This was all spurred by the State after Gov. Lee's executive order. While many grandparents are close to the kids, someone could make a case that an aunt or uncle is also very close to said player. Then what? Cousins, great-grandparents, best friends. The thought is these kids are DEFINITELY going to be exposed to the people that live in their home, so there isn't as much of an additional risk having them attend games. There is plenty of room in the gyms for lots more people (while still maintaining social distancing). This was the case under the previous rule. However, what the governors office insinuated is those efforts weren't being followed close enough to reduce the spread. Can't say I disagree, having attended a number of games myself. Lots of different families sitting together; many removing their masks once they are in the gym. However, that issue doesn't change regardless of the number of people you allow in a gym. People naturally want to sit together with people they know and you can only do so much to enforce mask wearing. In the end it is about optics. Numbers surged in TN and people were crying out about how sports were still allowed to go full-steam, with limited COVID restrictions. I don't think there is any data to support a correlation between sports and spread; if anything, the few things I have seen say there isn't a correlation at all. But, it's politics, and the governor isn't going to stick his neck out for high school sports anymore than he comfortably can. These restrictions are a lot more work for coaches and more inconvenient for fans. Personally, I think they should limit tickets to what we had before (1/3 capacity) or just have no fans at all and stream games online. I'd rather play in empty gyms and allow us to finish our seasons then not get to finish at all. Think that is how they should have handled things last March.

Bonds is good enough to score whenever she wants, but isn't assertive enough. If she played with the right mind set she'd be one of the top players offensively in the state, but she is too passive. Forces Williams to have to do a lot, which is why I'm sure she forced shots. Both are really good players. UC has a decent supporting cast too. But this will be there year to try and make a run. They'll struggle to replace what they'll lost with Williams next year.

I'm referring to how teams coming out of the West will fare in competition for the State title. In Class A, I think the two best teams in West TN are McKenzie and Gibson Co.

Vouch on Peabody comment. If you let them do what they do well, they are tough. If you can get them out of their element, not so much. Have to limit live-ball turnovers and make them hit shots. I do disagree on UC being a favorite against GC, but I do think it could be very competitive on the right night. UC lacks some of the consistency you see from GC, but their ceiling is very high. Bonds and Williams can get buckets when they want, but aren't always assertive enough. GC has an added layer from last year with more athletic guard play. Madison can do it all, but doesn't have to. Biggest factor would come down to execution. Whoever can force most mistakes and limit their own. That's why I mentioned consistency and would still give GC an edge.

Gibson Co. is going to be tough to beat coming out of the West. McKenzie has played really well and is one of the best challengers. As always there are some other teams that can play tough: Union City, Peabody, Greenfield, etc., but those are the two favorites IMO.

As I stated in my original post, some schools choosing to go back to school wouldn't have any bearing on sports. If the state recommends closing schools for the year, the TSSAA will follow suit with sports. Schools that went back could in theory still play regular season matches with other schools that are back in session, but there wouldn't be any point. The TSSAA will not sanction a postseason in which some schools are allowed to play and others aren't.

Gov. Lee hasn't seemed anxious to take strong actions. People have been calling the state out for a while and I haven't seen them ratchet up the intensity. I expect it will be a few weeks before he makes a decision about extending the school shut down. Also a note: According to the law, as I understand it, the state can't shut down schools. They can only recommend that they shut down. Even after this most recent order by the governor, there were a number of districts that were exploring/contemplating coming back to school. Wiser heads prevailed, but don't be surprised if a district or two decides to try and go back even if there is a recommendation made to end the school year. Not that it would have any bearing on sports, but just a note.

As stated, I agree that schools won't be going back, so I think the conversation as a whole is moot. However, since there is nothing else going on in the world of sports, it is something to talk about. To clarify, spring sports wouldn't be required to start right away, but they could begin once coaches felt like their kids were ready to play. As noted on other things, the TSSAA doesn't get involved with the regular season play, just postseason. Some sports would likely benefit from a reconditioning period. However, some sports are less reliant on game play for conditioning. Track, for instance, is just about running. Athletes could have been practicing on their own during this time period and be ready to run in meets once the go ahead is given. For sports like softball and baseball, you definitely wouldn't want to send a kid out to pitch seven innings cold. However, some of these kids could be throwing on their own during this break. I don't mind them allowing schools to take this as their own coaching staffs see fit. If I'm a team and I know my kids haven't been able to do anything over the break, I wouldn't want to rush into anything. However, if I know my kids have been working on their own, I might want to go ahead and get into competition to get ready for a postseason run.

My opinion: I am glad the TSSAA has laid out what the plan is moving forward. I think kids and coaches needed to know so they can tentatively plan accordingly. I'm also glad that the TSSAA hasn't thrown out the idea of having these championships and is working to try and make them happen. That being said, I don't expect any of this to come about. Talking with people in education, it sounds like the working theory is that the school year is over. This is obviously contingent on how the virus continues to go, but there isn't much optimism that schools will go back. The plan itself isn't too bad. As discussed in other forums, basketball certainly needs time to get back in rhythm and shape. The minimum amount of time needed, in my opinion, is two weeks, so three weeks seems like a good plan. Spring Fling being pushed back three weeks doesn't seem like too big of an issue either. The worst part of pushing it back into June will be the heat. When you move into June, you start to have heat index issues that could potentially delay a lot of games. Regardless, the plan is to have everything done before dead-period. As far as basketball is concerned, we still won't get to see these teams at their best. Three weeks is enough to help get these kids' legs back under them, but we won't be seeing the same level of basketball we saw back in March. This plan does appear to provide the opportunity for athletes that do basketball and a spring sport the opportunity to compete in both. Not sure how spring postseasons would line up with the proposed championship, but there is the possibility they could play in both. As mentioned above, I don't think we will see either of these happen, but I don't have a problem with the plan that they've laid out. If I'm an athlete, I now know what could be the potential plan and can be working on my own to make sure I'm prepared if those plans come to fruition.

Article came out from the Tennessean last night that lays out the current plan the TSSAA has. Link is posted below, it is behind a pay wall: https://www.jacksonsun.com/story/sports/high-school/2020/03/30/tssaa-schedule-state-basketball-tournaments-spring-fling/2933620001/ To lay out what was written: Current plan is contingent on kids going back to school April 27th (once Gov. Lee's current mandate expires) Basketball gets three weeks of practice before championship. Championships played week of May 18th. Spring sports could resume as early as April 27th, if coach thinks team is ready to go. Spring Fling pushed back three weeks to June 9-12th. Article says that if Gov. Lee shuts down schools for the year, that would officially put an end to the 2019-20 sports year. The TSSAA hasn't received back word on whether or not these dates will work with MTSU and are awaiting word. They are working with the Rutherford Co. CoC to make sure hotels would be available. No decisions have been made regarding dead-period and fall sports. We would likely get any decisions regarding those in June after the Board of Control meets.

These reactions are like asking if I want to go to Red Lobster for dinner, and me to tell you that I don't like seafood. Then you respond with, "There are starving people in this world that would kill to eat at Red Lobster!" While that statement is true, it is a red herring. There are some people on this board that no doubt aren't treating this virus with the proper amount of respect, or through the proper viewpoint; but, most understand that high school sports are far from the most important thing going on (or not going on) in the world right now. People are dying, people are losing jobs/money, people are afraid and uncertain about the future. Just because high school sports, or sports in general, aren't the most important thing right now, doesn't mean that they aren't important at all. Having empathy for kids that won't get an opportunity to try and achieve a sports goal, and having empathy for people suffering through this virus in a variety of other ways, aren't mutually exclusive. Many of us either know what it is like to try and pursue a championship and the sacrifices that must be made, or know someone who has battled and sacrificed to pursue that dream. If you know any of these kids personally, or even if you don't, your heart goes out to them. Right now, everyone in this country is missing out on things because of this virus. For these high school seniors, many won't get to finish their sports careers the way they wanted, or go to prom, or possibly even get to walk across the stage at their graduation. I'm not someone that looks back at my high school years that fondly, but even I can recognize that missing out on those things would stink. I feel for the fathers that aren't able to witness their child being born, because hospitals are on lock-down in places. I feel for the college kids who are uncertain about if they'll be able to graduate on time. I feel for the people who have either lost their jobs, or see the writing on the wall that they will lose their business. I feel for the elderly who are locked in a nursing home and can't visit with their family. It is possible to feel a lot of things at once. This situation sucks; but we bare through, not because we want to, but because we have to. If you don't think sports are relevant right now, then maybe you should consider not coming to a message board that is dedicated to sports for the time being. For some of us, it gives us an avenue to think and talk about stuff that is outside of this gloomy reality, for however brief. So please, take the righteous indignation elsewhere, while we try to be creative about this little state championship.

36 in boys. 12 in girls, since each class got down to the Final Four. Also there are only six gold balls left; two genders, three classes. It feels odd to get this close to a state title and then leave the title vacant for this season. These are incredibly rare circumstances, but I think something needs to be decided one way or another. Regardless of what the TSSAA decides, you'll see some teams "claim" a state title this year. If the TSSAA doesn't do anything official, that will be what you see. A shared title is literally "everyone gets a trophy", but I'd almost rather see that then no one getting one at all. There isn't a good solution out there, unfortunately.

I'll give them credit for not going ahead and canceling it when they met a week or so ago. We were still in the early stages of this, and it seemed premature to cancel stuff a few months out. However, with the recent developments of school being out until at least late April, they need to revisit their decision. Sports like baseball and softball are a little less reliant on conditioning and could get up in running in time for Spring Fling still, but every other sport likely wouldn't be able to. Basketball will require at least a few weeks of practice, and in my opinion- some sort of warm up scrimmages. Soccer is heavily reliant on conditioning, plus they haven't played much of their season. With the way the timeline is going, you'd struggle to get all of the qualification stuff taken care of in time for State, even under the best case scenario. Track is strictly conditioning, so the same applies; however, it is a little easier for kids to stay in shape on their own for track. I hate it for these kids. As someone who went to state in multiple sports, I recognize just how significant those achievements are and how hard these kids have worked. For the Seniors in spring sports, they've had their entire year taken from them and that will burn. However, in looking out for what is best for these kids, I don't see any way that they'll be able to get them enough time to get in shape to avoid injury. I commend the TSSAA for trying, but it is time to start investigating how they'll handle not finishing the basketball championship.

I'll leave the political part of this post alone, because I think there are significant issues on both sides of the aisle right now. Focusing on your second paragraph, the biggest factor in spreading of this virus is points of contact. People being around each other isn't inherently the issue. There isn't anything about a large gathering that summons this virus. However, if someone is infected, they are now at risk of infecting every person they come in contact with, and in turn every person that comes in contact with the people they've come in contact with, and so on and so forth. As of right now, with kids being out of school, if they are staying at home, the only point of contact for the virus is their parents, if they continue to work or leave the house. If they end up contracting the virus, it is contained to themselves because they aren't interacting with any additional groups of people. The more avenues we leave open for people to come into contact with additional people groups, the higher rate of spread we will see. So you are correct in your assertion that it is harmful to bring hundreds of kids together every day allowing them to interact with one another, and then sending them back into their homes. They now have potentially carried the virus to everyone in their household, who can now spread it to their points of contact. (Which is why it was puzzling for me that the TSSAA postponed the tournament when they did, considering they were sending the kids back to be exposed to a higher volume of people at school) Schools are one of the worst places to be if you are avoiding the spread of germs. Kids don't always practice the best hygiene. That combined with close proximity and many points of contact cause a significant increase in the spread of illness of any type. Every year schools battle with viruses and illnesses for this very reason. This virus will likely not be eradicated anytime soon. Our one Hail Mary for this coming to an abrupt end is it not being able to survive warm weather, but there is no clear indication that will be the case. At this point we need to buy time to allow for treatments and vaccines to be created to help protect us from it. Who knows how long that will take, but going back to normal life at any point in the near future will seriously hamper the effort to keep people from getting infected and potentially dying. Education is important, but we are finding out that in the 21st century, we have ways of doing this remotely, if even for just a short period of time. It is easy to keep schools closed and eliminate that as a possible added web in the spread of the virus. Similarly, I wouldn't expect interscholastic sports to resume until we feel comfortable enough to get schools open again.

During track, spring break always fell during the middle of our season. We would stay in town and practice, but people that traveled were always told to run on their own because that week of no activity would lose a majority of their conditioning. You could always tell after spring break who had run and who had not. Basketball is a bit harder, because just going and running a couple of miles doesn't work the same muscle groups as basketball and it doesn't simulate the anaerobic nature of the sport. Even if these kids have been doing some stuff on their own, they are going to need a couple of weeks to even been remotely prepared to physically compete at a state championship level. I don't think it will be as simple as everyone getting back to school and then just going out and playing. Players will really need some sort of tune-up. I wonder if the TSSAA would allow tournament teams to scrimmage some non-tournament teams to help get back in shape? There are a lot of questions that will need to be answered if we get to see a tournament played. At this point, I think it is moot, because I don't expect them to get approval to play.