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KHSAA delays start of fall sports; Kentucky State cancels their fall sports

Some bad news close to home.

By Aaron Gershon
Kentucky State’s Samuel Brown (14) tackles Jackson State receiver Warren Newman (6) as KSU’s Jacob Abrams reaches for the ball during the Circle City Classic Saturday in Indianapolis. Abrams recovered a fumble on the play and returned it 32 yards for a touchdown in KSU’s 33-25 victory. (Photo by Amanda Gerton/Courtesy of KSU Athletics)

We are now starting to learn more about how fall sports will look in the Bluegrass State.

A pair of important developments surfaced Friday morning as the KHSAA announced they’d delay their fall season,while Kentucky State University announced the cancellation of fall sports.

During a meeting with the Board of Control Friday morning, KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett laid out. A plan for high school sports to return to this fall. This included announcing that fall sports must wait to begin practicing until August 3, as opposed to the original start day of July 15.

Despite this, Tackett made it clear that the plan will be to play sports this fall. “We’re playing this fall,” Tackett said. “We’re going to participate in athletics and activities this fall. We don’t know what it’s going to look like, but we’re going to.”

As for Kentucky State, their fall sports season has been canceled entirely after an announcement from the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC)

SIAC Council of President Chairman George T. French, Jr., said “the decision to extend the SIAC suspension into the Fall of 2020 was guided by the prevailing data, science as well as current Coronavirus infection trajectories. In light of these very difficult realities, and in the context of the overarching priority of all of my colleague SIAC presidents to protect the health, wellness and safety of all of our students and staff, we are confident that the decision announced today is consistent with those fundamental health and safety priorities.”

Kentucky State president Christopher Brown II responded to the news with a statement stating that despite the cancellation of the season that the University will still honor all athletic scholarships this fall.

“Kentucky State University will honor all of the athletic scholarships extended to our current and incoming students and have begun the process to guarantee no loss of eligibility. The campus will seek safe alternatives for our student-athletes to remain competitive and engaged in amateur sportsmanship.”

KSU’s Football program was coming off a strong 2019 season that saw them go 7-3, including a 3-3 conference record.

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