High school football still on
High school football will take place this fall after a two-week delayed start, the Mississippi High School Activities Association announced on Tuesday amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The MHSAA Executive Committee announced the decision mid-way through Gov. Tate Reeves’ daily press conference.
Reeves said he was unaware of the decision at the time but would review all of the information and release a statement later. He indicated the last couple of weeks that it is unlikely schools will be able to pack the stands with fans to watch the games.
“The board felt these changes will give all of us more time to try to get back into the routine of school,” MHSAA Executive Committee President Kalvin Robinson said. “There are going to be many challenges — ones we’re anticipating and those we don’t even know about yet — in returning to on-campus learning. It’s going to be different than what we’ve experienced in the past. Hopefully pushing back the start of the Fall sports seasons will help make that transition a little smoother for everyone involved.”
The first games will kick off Sept. 4.
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia School District announced this week a plan to return to a normal school schedule with students attending classes on Aug. 5. (See story, 3A.)
Neshoba County Schools announced last week a similar return to classes.
Leake Academy Monday night announced a normal return on Aug 6.
Tribal and Union schools had not announced plans as of Tuesday afternoon.
Reeves opened up Tuesday’s daily press conference reiterating his charge for Mississippians to take the virus seriously and to start wearing face masks. He signed an executive order that went into effect Monday requiring face masks in 13 counties in the central part of the state. Neshoba County was not included on that list, but was as infections soared and then declined.
State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs announced on Tuesday that 41 legislators and capitol staff had tested positive for the virus from an outbreak at the capitol. Of that number, two are currently hospitalized.
On Tuesday, 862 new cases and 23 new deaths were reported in the state.
Dobbs said last week they are seeing an increase in cases in the 18-29 year-old age group.
“Some people aren’t hearing the message, some people are denying the message and some people are actively combating the message,” he said. “It’s getting worse. It gets worse every day.”
He expects larger numbers to come about following Fourth of July gatherings.
Neshoba County’s 14-day average rose again this week from 7.7 cases per day to 9. Three weeks ago that number was 6.4, though it’s still considerably less than the 13 cases per day reported one month ago.
The state’s death rate has been cut by 31% since May, data show, but hospitalizations, ICU cases and ventilator usage has risen.
As of Tuesday, Neshoba had 1,050 confirmed cases of the virus, with 106 of those cases in long-term care facilities. There have been 77 deaths here attributed to the virus, with 30 of those coming from long-term care facilities.
The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians has reported a total of 979 positive cases among Tribal members, with nearly half of those coming from the Pearl River community. Conehatta had 142 cases, with Standing Pine accounting for 118 cases. The Tribe has tested 2,902 members, with 1,826 negative results. Of the positive cases, 729 have recovered, 69 have died and 21 are hospitalized.
On Tuesday, state officials also announced that municipalities and counties in the state will be eligible for money appropriated by the legislature through CARES Act funds to help defray expenses associated with battling COVID-19. The total pot of $70 million will be disbursed to municipalities and counties based on population.