Two Modesto-area high school football programs back to work. Others will follow.
Central Catholic senior Phoenix Jackson jokingly said he usually prays not to have practice.
But, with the coronavirus pandemic, high school athletics have been halted since early April.
No practices, games, or meetings.
On Monday, Big Valley Christian and Central Catholic got a first sense of normalcy when they had their first summer football workouts after clearing it with Stanislaus County health officials.
“I was praying that we would have practice and it came true,” Jackson said.
The schools had meetings with parents and players last week, releasing guidelines for how to have safe practices, and said the sessions were not mandatory for those not comfortable to attend.
“It was a good first day and good to be back,” Big Valley Christian coach Brian Berkefeld said. “The kids needed this and coaches needed this.”
The two private schools were the only ones this week to begin summer football workouts, with Modesto Christian opening next week. Others, including Oakdale, Hughson and Denair, along with the Turlock Unified School District, which includes Turlock and PItman high schools, will start next week.
Some also will open workouts to other falls sports.
“It was great to see everyone,” Central Catholic coach Roger Canepa said. “Let the kids play.”
Canepa said the process of getting the green light to practice first had to come from the school before getting permission from the Diocese of Stockton and then reaching out to the county’s health department.
“It was a lot of paperwork,” Canepa said.
Different workouts
When players arrived at Central Catholic’s practice, they had their temperatures taken before being cleared to participate.
In Monday’s workout, the Raiders had 30 players and each group had 10 or less. The stations were agility work, lifting weights (not inside the gym), and “chalk talk,” where they discussed schemes and the playbook.
“We are keeping them under a watchful eye,” said Canepa, adding jokingly, “Call me Dr. Canepa.”
Jackson said it was “great” to be back and he called some of his teammates last week, right after the school announced they would begin workouts.
Berkefeld said he had a “smile” on his face on his drive from Oakdale before practice. The Lions had 37 players for the first day of workouts, which featured linemen technique, offense vs. defense plays, and skill players working on receiving routes.
The coaching staff had cones six feet apart, where players put their water bottles and Berkefeld led the group of linemen techniques while each player maintained social distancing.
Lions senior lineman Spencer Cox said while it was “different” because he couldn’t do any physical drills or use sleds or tackling dummies, it was the first time he saw some of his friends in a couple of months.
“I was so excited,” Cox said after practice. “I was able to come back out here with my brothers.”
One thing that was noticeably missing from both practices and will be unavailable for a couple of weeks, maybe even a month, was an actual football.
The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) released its “guidance for opening up high school athletics and activities” on May 19 and each sport will have to complete different phases before a return to “normal.”
In Phase 1, “A football player should not participate in team drills with a single ball that will be handed off or passed to other teammates.” When a team can move into the next stage is unknown.
Parents response
Adam Lema’s son, Marcus, is a senior quarterback and linebacker for the Lions, and he said his son’s energy was different once the school announced they would beginning football workouts.
“His energy is drawn from social activity and he recharges socially,” Adam said. “He bounced around all weekend and was so enthusiastic. He has paid his dues being on JV for a couple years and this is him and his friends’ team.”
Lema also said Berkefeld and David Voortman (Big Valley Christian Athletic Director) had a very strong plan for maintaining social distance. He had no concerns about his son participating in workouts.
“Somebody had to go first and set the standard,” Lema, who is science teacher at Big Valley and a youth football coach, said. “It’s easier on the smaller schools because we can practice the social distance guidelines easier.”
Larry Hagstrom said his son, Caden, a freshman, joined the team because of the idea of the “camaraderie.”
Hagstrom said he had no concerns as well about Caden practicing and his son was excited about the practice.
“There are 14 or 15 freshmen who are going to be out there and a lot of them are his friends,” Hagstrom said. “They have been out of school since March and he hasn’t been able to visit his friends.”
Who else is practicing?
While there have been rumors of some teams secretly meeting, here are some of the other teams who began formal football practices on Monday:
- Clovis Unified School District
- Clayton Valley Charter
- De La Salle
- Hilmar
- Sutter
Merced Unified is planning for a June 22 start as its return to high school athletics although nothing is official from the district.
