Hope for a 2020 Pennsylvania high school football season rose on Wednesday after the Pennsylvania Interscholatic Athletic Association Board of Control gave PIAA Executive Director Bob Lombardi the authority to permit offseason sports workouts prior the July 1 suspension date that has been set by the state’s governing body.
Now, before you start cheering, Lombardi will still be following the lead of Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf. Media reports indicate that the governor’s office is looking at a county-by-county re-opening of the state. After Wednesday vote, Lombardi now has the power to allow the start of athletic activities prior to July 1, if a school is located in a county that re-opens.
After Wednesday’s vote, Lombardi spoke to the media during a virtual press conference and said , “I’m cautiously optimistic and very hopeful. I am going to follow the governor’s guidance.”
High school sports across the state were shutdown on March 13 in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
If Lombardi does allow high school football workouts to begin as the governor opens counties, there could be an imbalance for some schools, if some counties take more time to re-open. However, at this point, I believe that school officials will be able to address that issue to make sure that no team has an unfair advantage.
