It’s no secret things aren’t exactly looking good here in Arizona. The number of coronavirus deaths continue to rise, but we have seen some leveling off in other factors such as overall cases, hospitalizations and even the infection rate.

Citizens and government officials asked Arizonans to wear a mask whenever out in public to help with the spread. So far, it seems most have done so and we are headed in the right direction. But I'm still not holding my breath.

Some school districts have already begun releasing plans to welcome students back in some capacity this fall. However, those plans could go out the window just as quickly as schools and sports were canceled in mid-March due to the pandemic.

The uncertainty as to whether or not a fall sports season in Arizona will take place is growing day-by-day as the pandemic in the state continues. So, just how confident are you that prep athletes will be able to take to the field, the court, the course and the pool this season?

I had several people – from media members to athletes to coaches and even some parents – ask me this question when schools and sports were initially shut down in mid-March as the virus first became prevalent in the state. At the time, I was still confident sports would be back in the fall. Heck, I still thought some of the spring football showcases would be able to take place. Even on May 15, when Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey announced Arizona would begin to open back up, I was still about 75 percent sure we would have a fall sports season without any limitations.

Now, however, I’m 50/50. Even then, I’m being generous.

I understand high school sports is only on the minds of a small portion of Arizonans. But for those of us who so dearly hope to be able to see sports take place in late August or early September, there needs to be some dire changes in how everyone goes about their lives NOW. Masks, social distancing, not going out when it isn’t necessary. Those are just a handful of ways to potentially turn things around. Unfortunately, not everyone feels any of that is necessary.

I'm just one voice. How do some of the other members of TeamAZV fell about the prospects of a season? I asked them to give me their answers:

"I think that we might be able to make the fall sports season work, and that even includes football, if we're willing to do something drastic. Of course, everything depends on how we're handling the pandemic as a greater society, but if the AIA and the individual schools are willing to sacrifice the state playoffs, just for the 2020 season, we can roll out an 8-game slate starting on Friday, October 2nd and ending on November 20th. Nobody wants to lose the opportunity to play postseason contests, and that's why I propose using the same formula the AIA uses to seed the teams for the playoffs, to determine similarly-yoked bowl game matchups for every single team in the state that is fielding a team in the 2020 season.

Eight games, starting on 10/1 and ending on 11/20, followed by a guaranteed bowl game to be played after the Thanksgiving Holiday.

One of the realities we have to confront is that any decision the AIA is making when trying to factor in how they can still make a season work is going to include the financial component of the AIA needing to make sure their organization is funded.

Bowl games can be staggered throughout a 10-14 day period beginning on November 27th, 2020, and the AIA can appease the corporate sponsors that help fund the governing body's employee salaries by granting each sponsor naming rights of one or more of the high profile games, and it still gives them a large base of games from which to collect revenue from ticket sales, or streaming fees if we're still not able to attend games in person.

I want there to be a season, and I want that season to be in the fall. Athletes who play spring sports have already made a sacrifice. They need not make another. Starting the season on the first Friday of October gives us a two-month buffer to help stem the spread of the virus, and allows teachers, coaches, and students to acclimate to the plethora of adjustments that will be required to make the "student" part of student-athlete work before beginning practices and games."

"I give a fall sports season a 50% chance.

Rumor has it that the NCAA MAY pass live periods for HS and AAU events in the month of September for basketball.

If that passes then I have to believe that the AIA will follow suit, with HUGE restrictions of course, including a strict list of people who can attend each specific game. Attendees would have to wear masks and sit 6-feet apart, etc. If you are not on the list, you can't get in. Maybe that's too extreme, but it MAY save the AIA season.

I don't think the virus is going away, but if a small number of people attend games, like maybe 100 max, spread out on both sides of the gym... maybe just maybe it can work."

"I put my number at 50% as well. The numbers were definitely going up in a scary way for a while. I'm always optimistic, so I'm hoping for a ig slow in the numbers in the next couple of weeks to allow for the season to take place, but I don't think we will see fans in the stands."

"I have a feeling the season is very much in jeopardy. I said there is 60 percent chance we won't have a sports season in 2020-21. Pure speculation, but it seems like a lot of people are leaning that way."

"During the lockdown I was up to 70/30 that we would have a season... but since the re-opening... I’m about 50/50.... #MaskUp"

"Overall, I hope the sports happen (selfishly), even if it’s delayed or something. But I would completely understand if they are suspended/cancelled. It’s just not the same situation as professional or even college sports."

"I'm at 40%.

As the weeks go by (and the cases go up), this number keeps getting smaller the closer we get. Certainly, hoping for the best. As far as fans, I know of one school that was going to hold a graduation (since cancelled), tickets were only going to be distributed 2 per senior. I could see a similar circumstance if games are played. I'm curious to see if AIA will try to limit games to a certain number of media."

"Man I hate to be a downer here, but I’m putting it at 25% that they play this school year. I have two kids in elementary school at the moment and all the updates I’m getting these days are about staggered schedules, virtual learning, masks all day, no recess, new regulations on eating in the cafeteria. If all that’s going on DURING SCHOOL, how in the world will it be validated to get more flexible on these regulations for sports?

I’m not trying to get into any debates on if this should or shouldn’t be enforced but just the mere factor that this is where it appears to be headed. Plus, every city and every district is going to have different regulations on all of this. This whole thing is a big mess locally and people ultimately aren’t going to want to touch it. It really sucks for the kids and my heart’s out to them!"

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