Plano West (Texas) High School baseball coach Kendall Clark said there are always major obstacles trying to jam spring playoffs into the final month of school: weather, proms, graduation.
“It never works out to where it’s an easy situation,” Clark said. “You just have to adjust and do the best you can.”
But no one ever anticipated a deadly flu epidemic.
The monumental decision today by the University Interscholastic League in Texas to postpone all athletic events until May 11 because of the swine flu outbreak was jarring but necessary according to those contacted around the Lone Star State and beyond early Wednesday afternoon.
“If it keeps from spreading, then I’m all for it,” Clark said.
The decision was based on a recommendation of the Texas Department of Health Services and with advice from the Texas Education Agency, UIL Executive Director Charles Breithaupt said.
“The health and safety of our student activity participants is of the utmost importance,” Breithaupt said in a statement. “Taking every possible precaution to prevent the further spreading of this disease is an important contribution to the welfare of our great state, and altering the schedule of our events is a way to keep our participants safe.”
The suspensions of games throw a major wrench into an extremely busy spring schedule that includes regional track meets, lacrosse, softball and baseball playoffs and even spring football.
Bellaire (Texas) baseball head coach Rocky Manuel
Photo by Jim Redman
Most spring coaches are frustrated by the news, but understanding, including Rocky Manuel, head coach of Houston-area power Bellaire, ranked No. 1 in the MaxPreps national Xcellent 25.
“The thing is, if the state thinks the health of a student or athlete will be impacted by an athletic event, we’re behind them 100 percent,” Manuel said. “The health of an athlete is more important.”
Is Manuel concerned how a lingering layoff will affect his team?
“We’re not going to use this as any excuse,” Manuel said. “This ruling is mandated for the entire state so we’ll all be on even ground once we get started again.”
John Carter, a baseball coach at Round Rock, 15 miles north of Austin, said coaches are in a Catch 22. The safety of kids around the state is at the forefront, but Carter is also worried about a long layoff for his pitchers and then asking them to do too much in the final weeks of the season.
Carter was getting ready to practice Wednesday when he heard the news. Teams are allowed to practice until the May 11 date.
"It’s a win, lose situation,” Carter said. “I understand why the state is doing it. Am I excited about the decision? No. Am I mad about it? No. The state is trying to do what’s best for all children. … But we’re all a little frustrated.”
Clark definitely is. He thought he'd seen it all. Until this.
"It never works out to where it's an easy situation because every playoff series is a little different," he said. "You just have to adjust and do the best you can.
"I don't know anyone who has it and I don't think the kids know anyone that has it. You can't be scared of it. You have to go around doing what you normally do."
But there is definitely nothing normal about this outbreak that has hit pockets of the state.
Cleburne Independent School District, located in a suburb of Dallas, closed all of its schools for the remainder of the week, sending home 6,600 students.
According to a report on WFAA.com, Cleburne Mayor Ted Reynolds is urging all parents to assist in preventing flu outbreaks.
"With schools closing, hundreds of school children will be out on the streets. We are asking parents to ensure children are home and not be with other kids," Reynolds said. "The Cleburne police will assist us in this matter."
According to Cleburne ISD spokesperson Lisa Magers, the school was notified by the Texas Department of State Health Services of four possible cases of the flu at Cleburne High School. All of the district campuses are reportedly being scrubbed and disinfected.
Texas Governor Rick Perry has issued a disaster declaration for the state in order to begin protective measures as well as receive federal government funds.
"My office, along with the Department of State Health Services and other state, local and federal partners have a plan in place to protect Texans should there be a pandemic flu outbreak or other health emergency," Perry said in an official statement.
Children in the Schertz-Cibolo-University City Independent School District of San Antonio are scheduled to return to school on Monday, but there is no determination as to when they will complete their Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills.
Texas students are required to have passing grades on the TAKS in order to advance a grade or graduate. The school district and state officials are reportedly working together in order to reschedule the testing. The school district was the first in the state to report a positive test for swine flu.
U.S. authorities began passive screening at the border in Brownsville, Texas. Although no diseases have been reported in the area, according to the Brownsville Herald, the only known U.S. fatality from the swine flu passed through Brownsville from Mexico before eventually dying Monday in Houston.
Not all Texas schools have postponed playoff action.
The Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) held an emergency executive session on Wednesday and unanimously voted to keep its playoffs on schedule.
The organization addressed the vote on its website, relaying, "TAPPS continues to monitor the situation and will advise member schools should changes be deemed necessary. … The welfare of students is best determined by parents and individual member schools. No sanction or penalty will be imposed by TAPPS should a school choose to not participate in the TAPPS playoffs in response to health concerns.”
Dallas Jesuit Athletic Director Steve Koch supports the UIL decision. His school and Strake Jesuit are the only two private schools in the UIL.
"I don't think this is a real big issue (for us)," he said. "Everyone is very easy to adjust and work with the state to do what we need to do to help on this swine issue. ... I think there's a realistic awareness now, but I don't think there's any fear or any panic by any means.. They are just rolling with the punches like all the kids."
Thus far the rest of the country is taking a wait and see approach.
California Interscholastic Federation Executive Director Marie Ishida said she and 10 section commissioners in the state are monitoring their schools and districts.
“Everything is changing so quickly and rapidly, it’s hard to keep on top of," Ishida said. "Texas needed to do something immediate because they’ve had more cases and because their proximity to Mexico.
“What we have to remember that it’s only a game and an activity. People are dying and we want to protect our students. We’d rather protect a life than a win or a championship trophy. “
The San Diego Section is the closest in proximity to Mexico and Ishida said its commissioner Dennis Ackerman scheduled a conference call with the San Diego Superintendent of Schools to discuss the Texas decision.
““Everything is being monitored right now but no cancellations have been planned like in Texas,” Ackerman said. “We are working in conjunction with the San Diego Superintendent of Schools and we are looking at possible scenarios. We may know more in the next couple of days.”
In Arizona, Nogales High School (Pima County) is right on the border of Mexico and its athletic director Tim Colgate said he has heard of just one case in the area, though none at his school.
“We have not been affected by the flu,” Colgate said. “I know that there is a lot of concern here because Nogales is right on the border, but we are going ahead with all of our games as planned.”
In New Mexico, games are still being played as scheduled, according to Las Cruces Athletic Director Bobby Campos.
“The flu really hasn’t affected us. Our school district does a great job of keeping us informed about any problems and keeping us updated on the situation," Campos said. "There are no cases that I’m aware of in New Mexico and we’re still on board to go play our games here in Las Cruces.”
An high school-aged soccer team from Bradenton, Fla., changed its plans drastically this week.
The team is headed home, in fact, after health officials in Mexico canceled the CONCACAF under-17 soccer championship in Tijuana.
Teams from Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico and the United States had advanced to the tournament semifinals; however CONCACAF officials were prompted to close down the tournament “to safeguard the health of players, officials and fans.”
“Our primary concern is the safety of our athletes and all of the athlete that were involved in the tournament,” said Neil Buethe, a spokesman for US Soccer, in a wire service report.
This isn’t the first flu epidemic that has hit the country.
In 1976, a flu outbreak at Fort Dix, N.J., resulted in an order from President Gerald Ford for a nationwide swine flu vaccination at a cost of $135 million.
Private David Lewis, a 19-year old soldier at Fort Dix, came down with flu symptoms and died within 24 hours. A check by government doctors found 500 infected soldiers prompting the declaration from President Ford.
National health officials were hoping the vaccinations would avoid a similar flu plague that resulted in 20 million deaths in 1918.
Pearlman (Texas) athletic director Mike Watson doesn’t want to panic his student-athletes with that kind of information.
Thus far, he said, the response of his students has been predictable.
“I don’t want to speak for all the kids, but I think the general opinion is like any teenager, ‘It can’t happen to me,’ “ Watson said. “But I don’t sense anybody panicking. I don’t sense anybody overly afraid. ‘Slightly concerned’ might be the right way to put it.”
According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, there are 91 confirmed cases of swine flu in the United States with 16 in Texas, 14 in California and 51 in New York.
St. Francis Preparatory School in Fresh Meadows, N.Y., has the most confirmed cases with 28. The students there are believed to have been infected by other students who recently returned from a trip to Mexico.
Staff writers Kevin Askeland, Jason Hickman and Stephen Spiewak contributed to this report.
Useful Links: Centers of Disease Control and Prevention
State sports governing bodies with messages on swine flu: Texas, California, Arizona
