Frankfort

Gov. Andy Beshear said Monday he would allow high school sports to move forward this fall and not overturn last week’s decision by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association.

“We’re not going to overturn that decision. Not because I think it’s a wise decision, but because we need people other than me taking responsibility to make good decisions. By starting high contact sports, we risk many things,” Beshear said. “We can’t be making every decision out of the governor’s office. We have to depend on our superintendents, our coaches to make wise decisions. For every program starting up, are you testing athletes, are you putting them first?”

The decision came after more than 100 student athletes and parents gathered on the Capitol steps Monday morning to voice their support for moving forward with high school athletics amid the coronavirus pandemic, some teams across the state got underway.

Frederick Douglass soccer’s Emily Coke and a few teammates joined the “‘Let them Play’ in Kentucky” rally organized quickly by a Facebook group that has grown to more than 31,000 members since it was formed Friday afternoon. The rally included student athletes from as far away as Whitley County.

“Soccer’s always been a big part of my life and having it potentially get taken away is just awful,” said Coke, who was part of the first-ever freshman class at the school three years ago and is now a senior. “I definitely respect all the officials that are making the decisions and everything, but at least for our team and so many other teams — we’ve definitely followed all the rules they’ve put in play and we’ve worked so hard these past weeks — we want them to hear our voice today. We’ll do whatever it takes.”

The Douglass players also attended another rally in Lexington ahead of Monday evening’s Fayette County County Board of Education meeting. The school system put a halt to all athletics activities temporarily to allow the board to consider what steps to take next. A similar rally was planned in Louisville where Jefferson County’s school board was also considering its options Monday.

Last week, the Kentucky High School Athletic Association voted to allow its fall sports to begin practices this week and games to kick off the week of Sept. 7. However, Gov. Andy Beshear must still sign off on the plan before competitions can begin. That decision is expected soon, but no timetable for reaching it has been announced.

Because many fall sports, such as football, soccer and volleyball are perceived as posing a higher risk of continuous contact and thus a higher risk of potentially spreading the coronavirus, high school sports teams in the state have been limited to training that consists only of conditioning and individual skills for the last two months. Real practices that include game-like situations have been forbidden.

State Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, spoke to those gathered.

“I’m so encouraged being an educator, to see the civic participation today by you all being here and standing for something you truly believe in,” he said. “These are very valid concerns that we have … We can do this right. We can do this in a safe way. We can have sports this fall.”

Critics of the restrictions believe teams can step up practices and play games safely and that repeatedly delaying activities only makes it more likely seasons will slip away with no window left to play them, regardless of the COVID-19 risk. With the governor set to hold his daily COVID briefing later Monday those at the rally wanted to send a message.

“I hope (Beshear) hears that the athletes have done their part. Their parents are willing to do their part,” said Dawne Perkins of Lexington, the founder of the Let them Play Facebook group and rally organizer. “We understand the dynamics of the pandemic. We understand the possibilities of it and under no circumstances, whatsoever, do we want to put anybody at risk … But we can’t stay home forever. A lot of the higher ups have said this is going to be around for a long time. We just want to take 2020 and try to create a new normal for now.”

In Lexington, a few dozen students and parents had gathered in front of Fayette County School’s Central Office by 4:30 p.m. Monday.

“We’re here to show our support for student athletes, to let them go ahead and play,” said Bryan Henderson, who said three of his children are student athletes in Fayette County.

“It’s hard to swallow that we can have hundreds of people in bars and restaurants and movie theaters…and with a very controlled environment with student athletes that we can’t have them play, outdoors even,” Henderson said.

Kylee Morgan, a Douglass girl’s soccer player who rallied in Lexington Monday, said she hoped Fayette school board members realized that students were taking precautions.

“There are obviously safe ways for us to go about having a season,” said Kylee, a junior.

In its press release last week, KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett said the KHSAA’s board recognized that different districts might want to move at different speeds in resuming play.

“It is critical that we expand as slowly as possible and our programs not press the accelerator too quickly,” Tackett said. “Certainly, no one should expect teams to be in postseason form in their first game and if administrators and coaches don’t feel like this slower progression is in their best interests, they need to wait to start contests. The KHSAA doesn’t direct teams to play, we only define the allowable times for play. We will plan on the submission of contest documents very early next week and will remain available to discuss any of those provisions with the governor’s office and the Kentucky Department of Health.”

Oldham County schools are among those waiting for the governor’s ruling before doing anything beyond conditioning. In Lexington, Lexington Catholic and Lexington Christian announced a temporary halt to athletics activities. LexCath’s move came after in-person classes were suspended there this week after a few positive COVID-19 cases.

In Scott County, the Cardinals’ football team put on helmets for their practice for the first time Monday morning and its boys’ and girls’ soccer teams held tryouts.

“Right now, we’re just embracing today and trying to have a great day today,” Scott County football coach Jim McKee said. “One of the things that makes us great (as coaches and administrators at Scott County) is that we all work together in what we feel like is the common good for our student athletes. And as a collective body, we all felt good about moving forward.”

McKee’s team hasn’t had any COVID incidents this summer, but he said he recognizes the threat is out there and has affected other teams at various points this summer.

“I’ve had incidences of people close to me that have had to deal with it,” he said. “We totally respect where we are. We don’t control tomorrow. I don’t get votes on ‘you’re shutting down, you’re starting, you’re doing this — that’s not my worry. I’m not going to worry about that.

“If we can practice today, we’re going to practice.”

This story will be updated.