Citrus County Student-Athletes, Welcome Back

… please be responsible and have a great season!

This Tuesday, September 17, 2020, student-athletes in high school sports will begin practices for the 2020-2021 fall season. In a typical year, student-athletes and coaches would have started around the first official day of school, but due to COVID-19 this is no typical school year and so practices did not start.  Following the authorization by the Florida High School Athletics Association (FHSAA) to permit high school fall sports athlete practices, competitions, and the 2020 Fall State Series. FHSAA fall sports include Bowling, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Swimming & Diving, and Girls Volleyball. The FHSAA State Series allows eligible student-athletes and school teams the opportunity in each sport to compete in FHSAA district and regional championships in hopes to qualify and advance to the coveted FHSAA State Championships.

Getting to this point of beginning high school athletic practices in Citrus County Schools has been no small task.  It has involved monumental consideration, planning, and organizing. District leaders in Citrus and Hernando County School Districts worked together with School Athletic Directors and Coaches to developed new safety procedures, protocols, practice routines, and competition plans. This has involved hundreds of high school athletic-coaches working together. I have had the honor and privilege of being involved in the process and I have been so impressed working with these student-focused committed individuals. I want to thank each of the coaches and their assistants for their work. I want to especially thank our high school athletic directors Ron Allan (LHS), Larry Bishop (CHS), and Robert Verlato (CRHS) and their counterparts in Hernando County, who have put in countless hours over and above their assigned duties coordinating and developing these plans.  Lastly, I want to a specially thank Citrus County School Assistance-Superintendent Jonny Bishop who has headed up the “return to competition plan” for Citrus County Schools. For Mr. Bishop I feel this was more than just a leadership task, this was a passion of the heart project. Himself a former high school athlete, coach, father of multiple high school and collegiate athletes, Mr. Bishop like me believes the important valuable role afterschool and extracurricular activities play in the academic and personal success of students.

To Our Student-Athletes…

To our student-athletes, we are so proud of you, we brag about you, we fight for you! Now more than ever your team and the student-athletes on other teams are depending on you. It’s important that you precisely and carefully follow these return to practice and competition plans. You need to hold each other accountable. Outside of practice, you have a vital responsibility to your team and sports by social distancing, wear a mask, and recognizing that the choices you make regarding exposure to yourself and your teammates will have a tremendous impact on your success, the success of your team, and the success for your coaches— who have been working so tirelessly to give you this opportunity and to show the world your talents and the important role these activities play in the life and success of students.

Whether this is your first season, another season, or your senior year, you have a special opportunity to positively contribute to your team and your own success. Make the most of this opportunity, have fun, and have a great season!

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