The high school football playoffs will go on as scheduled this week after the KHSAA Board of Control opted to not alter the schedule.
As schools scrambled to make postseason decisions due to the COVID-19 virus, the KHSAA chose to push back the playoffs a week so that schools could make a final decision. Entering Wednesday, there were at least 16 schools that had chosen to opt out of the postseason.
KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett said they will continue to fill the playoff bracket with byes in the first three rounds if teams choose not to play.
Once teams reach the semifinals and finals, byes will not be given meaning a team that loses in the semifinals could advance to the championship if the team that beats them goes into quarantine.
Tackett said Kroger Field on the University of Kentucky campus has still agreed to host the championship weekend. The facility has submitted a plan to the state with an attendance cap of 7,000 fans per game set. Last year, the state championship games saw between 8,000 and 10,000 people attend.
Tackett said only the lower bowl of Kroger Field will be used and that use of the suites and luxury boxes will be limited.
He also said the Southeastern Conference has set December 19 as a conference make-up date due to COVID-19 cancellations. As of now, UK has not had any lost games, and Kroger Field still remains available to the KHSAA. If UK does have to use the date, Tackett said state championship games will be rescheduled around Saturday.
In his report to the board of control, Tackett said 60 district football games were not played due to COVID-19 concerns. He added the state’s Ratings Percentage Index [RPI] that was created last year did a good job in determining seeding for the postseason in the absence of the lost games on the schedule.
He did say the lost revenue from the 2020 Sweet 16 basketball tournaments means the state will not reimburse schools for travel expenses to the state football championships. Tackett said most states already don’t do this but that Kentucky has to help defray the costs at the school level.
Tackett also encourages student sections at football games to do a better job of adhering to the school’s social distancing rules for attendance.
The first round of the football playoffs in all six classes will begin this weekend.
