NJSIAA Hopes For Short Spring Sports Season Amid Coronavirus

ROBBINSVILLE, NJ — If schools across New Jersey are reopened next month, there could be a spring high school sports season, albeit an abbreviated one, according to the NJSIAA.

The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, which oversees high schools sports, has plans it can roll out that would allow for competition starting as late as May 25, officials said in a statement.

Gov. Phil Murphy on Thursday said all schools in the state will remain closed through May 15, extending the closure he announced March 16 as efforts to slow the spread of the new coronavirus increased. The shutdown of the schools came two weeks before official spring games and meets were to begin.

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If Murphy decides to reopen schools when May 15 arrives, the NJSIAA said spring games and meets could start as late as May 25. The state tournaments would likely be scrapped however. The spring sports season would end June 30, when the schools' and state's fiscal year ends, no matter what, the NJSIAA said.

"The return-to-school date and related public health guidelines will continue to determine the viability of a spring sports season," the NJSIAA said in a statement. "(The) NJSIAA is committed to doing whatever is possible to provide New Jersey’s student-athletes with some type of spring season."

Murphy, in announcing the closure through May 15, said he is hopeful that in May it will be safe to reopen schools and resume sports. "I hope I will be put in a position a month from now to make a different decision," he said.

As of Thursday, 75,317 New Jerseyans have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, and 3,518 have died – more than the state's death toll from World War I. Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

If Murphy closes schools for the remainder of the year, it will be an abrupt and unexpected ending to the high school sports careers for seniors. But according to report by NorthJersey.com, talks are in the works to provide an additional year of sports eligibility for high school sophomores and juniors.

The proposal by Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Wood-Ridge) would create a "Bridge Year" for members of the Class of 2021 and 2022, allowing them to play sports and participate in spring activities at their high schools after graduation if they are attending a New Jersey community college.

The idea behind it, according to the report, is to provide athletes a chance to show their abilities to college programs; for spring sports, recruiting interest is heaviest in sophomore and junior years of high school.

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