Earlier this week, fueled by calls to action from a Twitter account associated with Phoenix College football, KTVK ran a report about the potential phasing out of football at four Maricopa County Community Colleges. AZCentral then cited the KTVK report and posted reaction from high school coaches to the potential news.

I've spent the last couple days speaking to several people in the know, and I'm here to assure you that Junior College football in Maricopa County isn't going anywhere. Not yet, anyway.

Here's the gist of what you need to know: In 2012 a series of "Task Forces" were commissioned by then-chancellor Rufus Glasper, with each and every department of the Maricopa County Community College District set to undergo an examination to see how students might be better served. About a year ago, the Maricopa Priorities Athletics Task Force was formed as part of the original 2012 plan, and the result of the research done into how students within the MCCCD system might best be served in the future ultimately recommended that football at the four (of ten) MCCCD schools be phased out.

So that much is true- there was a task force, they did recommend that Phoenix College, Mesa Community College, Glendale Community College and Scottsdale Community College eliminate their football programs, and people associated with these programs were indeed informed of that recommendation in early May.

Here's what you might not know about the recommendation of the Maricopa Priorities Athletic Task Force- it's not under consideration. Not yet, anyway. Just because a suggestion has been made, doesn't mean it's been taken under advisement, and according to MCCCD Chief Marketing Officer Robert Schwing, the time for consideration of the matter, much less debate over the recommendation's merits, are an issue that will be considered in the fall- meaning the current athletic system as a whole will remain unaffected by any potential policy change during the yet-to-begin 2017-2018 school year. More than that, the recommendation itself doesn't call for any specific action to be taken other than to, over an unspecified period of time, phase out football.

Dr. Maria Harper-Marinick, the current MCCCD chancellor, has three options when it comes to taking any recommendations of any task force, be it one meant to look into Fine Arts, Curriculum, Technology, or in this case, Athletics. Harper-Marinick can accept the recommendations as offered, reject the recommendations outright, or adjust the recommendations to fit the vision that she has for MCCCD moving forward. This means literally anything is possible. We could just as easily see football phased out of the four MCCCD schools over a period of 3-5 years as we could see no changes at all. The possibility exists that four Junior College football programs become two, or who knows- while unlikely, we could even see an expansion to include football at other campuses like Chandler-Gilbert.

Despite what you may think, this recommendation is not related to the phasing out of funding for community colleges under the most recent budgets coming out of the Arizona State legislature. According to the KTVK report, this is about insurance costs- specifically that 55% of the overall insurance cost for MCCCD comes from having to insure the four football programs. Those are numbers the Athletics Task Force wouldn't be able to ignore when looking for ways to save the University money, and the Athletics Task Force has the advantage of knowing that no recommendation they've made carries any authority over those who are ultimately responsible for deciding MCCCD's future course. Recommendations are just that- recommendations. Dr. Harper-Marinick may choose to give this as much credence and consideration as you might a restaurant suggestion you solicited from an acquaintance.

Sources within the Junior College football community were quick to point out that discussions over the continuation of football programs within MCCCD is an ever-present topic, and this recommendation is simply the latest in a long line of storms they've always managed to weather. Moreover, through connections to the surrounding high school communities, these football programs have become one of MCCCD's greatest source of recruitment and evangelism- not to mention the combined millions of dollars awarded in scholarships each year that come as a result of participation in MCCCD football.

In the 2017 recruiting class alone, all four schools helped scores of former local prep football athletes into situations where their education is being paid for at four-year institutions such as Boise State, New Mexico, Southern Utah, and UNLV. Jaeren Burch, a 2015 graduate of Perry, only had four receptions as a senior in high school. Two years later, he's leaving Phoenix College to head to Northern Arizona with a football scholarship. Perhaps more important than anecdotal success stories, MCCCD's football programs are leading to, at a minimum, associates degrees for many students who may never have pursued higher education if not for opportunities to participate in athletics.

Arizona is in a unique position for a state its size, in that it only carries three NCAA football programs. Between Arizona State University, University of Arizona, and Northern Arizona University, there are usually less than 20 combined in-state student-athletes per year who accept football scholarships to those Universities. New Mexico, a state with less than a third of the population of Arizona, has five NCAA football options. Utah, which has less than half Arizona's population, has six NCAA football options. Colorado, comparable in population to Arizona, but still smaller by close to one million residents, has 10 NCAA football options. While schools like Arizona Christian and Ottawa have added football programs that compete at the NAIA level, most of the scholarship opportunities they offer are partial scholarships, and both schools' cost of room and board is well over $30,000 annually. Arizona's Junior College system fills a void left by a lack of NCAA football options, as well as a lack of reasonably affordable alternatives in the state of Arizona.

At the end of the day, MCCCD's institutions are funded by the taxpayer, and as Robert Schwing told me, "we have to be good stewards." The leadership of MCCCD's institutions will ultimately be judged on their ability to manage the resources they're given, and how the management of those resources affects the experiences of the students they serve

"There are no sacred cows in this field," said Schwing. And he's right, there shouldn't be any limitations when it comes to the considerations one makes about the health and viability of the institution they run. But considerations and actions are very different animals- it's one thing to imagine Maricopa County without Junior College football options, and project the financial benefits and insurance cost relief that cutting those programs could provide- but it's another thing entirely to pull the plug on a program whose benefits are tangible and easily publicly identifiable.

When it comes down to it, I don't see Dr. Harper-Marinick taking the recommendation of the Maricopa Priorities Athletics Task Force at face value. While there may be changes coming, they won't be soon, and they're unlikely be drastic. You can rest easy- for now.