BELLEVILLE, Mich. – High school football playoffs started back up again Saturday after players were sidelined for weeks because of coronavirus.
High school football in January hasn’t happened in Michigan before, but the 2020-21 school year has been a unique year.
Jan. 9, 2021: Michigan coronavirus cases up to 519,082; Death toll now at 13,354
Belleville faced Detroit Cass Tech nearly two months after the game was supposed to originally happen.
“Today’s a great day for football,” said Cass Tech head coach Thomas Wilcher. “The sun is out. The field is warming up off the turf off the side. You got two great teams out here.”
Wilcher said with all the starts and stops the COVID pandemic has brought, he has worried about player injuries.
“MHSAA did a great job trying to produce a season,” Wilcher said. “I hope mental toughness and body fatigue do not play a role due to the many days we’ve been off.”
Belleville coach Jermain Crowell had a tough battle with coronavirus in December. After he recovered, he told Local 4 he thought the season should be postponed to the spring.
“At this point, what difference does it make complaining over here?” Crowell said. “Accept it and roll with it.”
Both coaches said playing football means so much to the students, especially in an unprecedented year, and they’re happy to be there for them.
The hope is every coach, player, referee and school staff member gets through these playoffs safely and the MHSAA crowns a champion.
Belleville came out on top 43-16. The will host West Bloomfield Saturday in the state semifinals.
READ: Tracking coronavirus cases, outbreaks in Michigan schools