NJSIAA officials, who met with Gov. Phil Murphy on Thursday, anticipate an announcement regarding the fall sports season will be made sometime next week.

In an email shared with athletics directors of member schools, NJSIAA Chief Operating Officer Colleen Maguire called the 30-minute meeting with Murphy “productive.”

Maguire also followed up on an NJSIAA statement from earlier in the week in which the NJSIAA informed student-athletes studying all-remote that they could still participate in athletics, provided their boards of education approve.

“The significance of (that) statement is to confirm that there currently is no reason to pivot to a contingency model,” Maguire wrote. “Club sport competition was active this summer, and NJ’s health indicators continue to remain low.  Also, there is no confirmed medical evidence that transmission or spread occurs during competition.”

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Maguire said the NJSIAA’s COVID-19 Sports Advisory Task Force, in anticipation of an announcement next week regarding the fall season, is finalizing plans for the remainder of the school year. 

“These plans should be available around the same time as the announcement regarding the fall season, but if not then, very soon thereafter,” she wrote. “As we know, all plans are fluid, so they will be flexible and ready to pivot at any point.”

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Maguire told the athletics directors she is aware that some “may be dealing with school administrators who are seriously considering cancelling the fall sports season,” as four school districts have already done.

In addition, New Egypt and Trenton told West Jersey Football League officials that their programs will not compete this season.

Late last month, Murphy said he is optimistic fall sports can be played. “My personal view,” he said, “is we’ll get there.”

He tempered those remarks earlier this month, saying he is still holding out “some optimism’’ that scholastic sports will take place this fall. “This is an NJSIAA decision, ultimately,’’ Murphy said.

Fall sports competition is scheduled to commence on Sept. 18 for girls tennis, Oct. 2 for football and Oct. 1 for all other sports.

The date for the start of official fall sports practices is Sept. 14.

Email: gtufaro@gannett.com