Hilmar begins football workouts. Merced County schools to follow, with COVID-19 precautions
For the past three months, Hilmar quarterback Seth Miguel has been relegated mostly to working out on his own. The soon-to-be senior has spent time jogging, running and doing push-ups and sit-ups.
At times it’s hard to find the self-motivation to push yourself when you’re doing solo workouts.
That’s why it’s been refreshing for Miguel to rejoin his teammates as the Yellowjackets football team began summer workouts recently at McSweeney Field on the campus of Hilmar High School.
“It’s definitely great motivation to get our here and practice with my teammates,” Miguel said. “They push me and I push them. Everyone is out here trying to work hard. It feels good to be back out here.”
Miguel hasn’t seen many of his teammates since schools closed down in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Hilmar coach Frank Marques admits he was pleasantly surprised when the football program was given the OK to begin workouts this week.
It started with Marques presenting a proposal to Hilmar principal Melissa Brewer and Hilmar Unified School District Superintendent Isabel Cabral-Johnson. They then presented the plan to the Merced County Health Department. After a few modifications were made to the plan, Hilmar was given the OK to start practices.
Other schools like Stone Ridge Christian, Central Catholic, Big Valley Christian and schools in Clovis also began workouts this week. Schools in Modesto and Turlock hope to begin workouts next week.
Merced Union High School District schools will be presenting a similar proposal to the heath department in hopes of beginning workouts on June 22.
Marques says it’s been great to reconnect with the kids.
“I didn’t realize how much social interaction the kids need,” Marques said. “Football is great, but it’s the interaction with other kids and coaches that the kids need. This gives them something to be a part of, a chance to be back on campus.”
Safety guidelines
In order to be allowed to hold workouts, the school had to show what COVID-19 safety precautions would be in place and how the school would enforce them.
At Hilmar, temperatures of each athlete are taken before practice and logged. There can be groups of no more than 10 kids working with one coach. That coach stays with the same group during the entire workout.
There is no equipment, including footballs, being used during the workouts.
All activities must be outside and social distancing is adhered to throughout the workout.
The safety guidelines are similar to the ones released by The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) in its “guidance for opening up high school athletics and activities” on May 19.
“We took the literal translation of no equipment,” Marques said. “We’ve used field paint to make up for not using cones or ladders.”
Hlimar’s football workouts last one hour.
Athletic directors from Merced, Golden Valley, El Capitan, Buhach Colony, Atwater and Livingston have met twice in the last week to help put together a similar proposal for workouts for all sports.
“All district schools will follow the same plan,” said Derek Dailey, who is the Merced Union High School District manager of risk management.
According to Los Banos athletic director Joe Barcellos, Los Banos and Pacheco high schools are using the same blueprint from the Merced Union High School District to present to their district to begin workouts around the same time.
The California Interscholastic Federation announced on Friday that it will collaborate with the 10 sections in the state and will determine by July 20 if fall sports will continue as currently scheduled. The CIF is prepared to offer alternative calendars if it is determined that fall sports may not start as scheduled due to ongoing public health and safety concerns.
The district will also have a plan in place if an athlete or coach tests positive for coronavirus.
According to Merced Union High School District spokesperson Sam Yniguez, the district would follow the health department’s guidelines for quarantining and contact tracing of the infected person. That could mean a 14-day quarantine for a group of players who came in contact with the player or the team if needed.
Reuniting athletes with coaches
It’s still unclear whether fall sports like football will start on time, due to COVID-19. The first game of the season in scheduled for Aug. 21. Local coaches and athletic directors feel they still need to prepare for that starting date until they are told different.
“We have to hope and prepare for a normal open to the season,” said Merced athletic director Paul Hogue. “If we don’t prepare we’re not going to be ready. We have to prepare to be prepared.”
Merced’s target date of June 22 for workouts is to give time for coaches to be certified and for athletes to get physicals.
For the past three months, coaches have been relegated to connecting with their athletes through Zoom meetings.
“For the past three months we haven’t been able to do anything,” said Buhach Colony athletic director Kevin Navarra. “It’s important for our coaches to reconnect again face-to-face with our kids. For our seniors, we’ve micromanaged their training for the past three years and for the past three months they have been on their own.”
The hope is the teams can successfully navigate their way through this first phase safely and then graduate to different phases, which include working out inside, working with bigger groups, introducing equipment and weight rooms.
“I think it’s important to begin conditioning for the physical side, but also the mental side as well,” said Livingston athletic director Scott Winton. “It’s getting kids out of the house and moving around. We want to do whatever the district and the health department deem safe.
“It’s a step in the right direction.”
This story was originally published June 12, 2020 at 2:25 PM.
