Will Bay Area health officials put halt on college football as coronavirus cases spike?
Another COVID-19 outbreak has left Bay Area football fans wondering whether their teams’ seasons can continue as public health officials clamp down on activities just before the Thanksgiving holiday.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Monday that Santa Clara and many of California’s counties have been placed in the most restrictive tier — purple — in the state’s reopening system.
The decision comes just weeks after the Bay Area’s three Division I-FBS teams returned to action, leading to questions about whether they can proceed under the new guidelines.
“We are in the thick of discussions on how sports play within this new information that we have,” said Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara County public health officer. “We did not expect to be landing in the purple tier right now.”
Cody told the Bay Area News Group after a Monday news conference that county officials do not have a timeline to make a determination about sports events even though the schools have a sense of urgency with games this weekend.
“A lot of decisions, a lot of thinking, a lot to discuss,” Cody said. “I can just tell you it’s something we’re actively considering in the context of everything else that’s going on.”
On Saturday, Cal is scheduled to play at Oregon State, Stanford plays host to Washington State and San Jose State travels to face rival Fresno State.
Health officials from Cal and the city of Berkeley did not have an immediate response to questions about the new restrictions.
Marie Tuite, San Jose State athletic director, said Monday the Santa Clara County protocols to practice and play games are not tied to a designated tier.
“So as of this moment, right now, things are moving forward,” she said. “Just like they were yesterday. That doesn’t mean it won’t change. As we have from the beginning, we’ll take guidance from health officials before we make decisions for our football program.”
Tuite said school administrators have not held conversations with county health officers about the new situation because the announcement had just been made. She said school officials are waiting for direction before having additional conversations.
Stanford athletic officials said in a statement that they are evaluating the “rapidly changing landscape while prioritizing the safety, health and well-being of our entire community.” The statement added that the school is in contact with Santa Clara County.
At least this much is clear: Shelve those plans to attend a San Francisco 49ers game any time soon.
“We understand that may not happen during the current NFL season,” said a person with knowledge of the team’s efforts to allow spectators at Levi’s Stadium.
As of Monday, more than 1 million novel coronavirus cases have been confirmed in California and more than 18,200 people have died as a result. In the past two weeks, the average number of cases reported each day has nearly doubled — a 91% increase from about 4,162 per day at the start of November — and the number of patients hospitalized has increased by nearly 50%.
“We are in the midst of a surge, and time is of the essence,” said Dr. Mark Ghaly, California Health and Human Services secretary. “Every day matters and every decision matters.”
In the Bay Area, Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, Napa and Solano counties will move into the purple tier on Tuesday, officials said. Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties will be placed in the red tier, the second-most restrictive behind purple.
The governors of California, Oregon and Washington issued a joint coronavirus travel advisory on Friday urging people arriving in their states to self-quarantine for 14 days. The West Coast states also advised people to avoid non-essential out-of-state travel.
How the travel advisory will affect Bay Area teams is anyone’s guess for now. The 49ers’ next game is Nov. 29 in Inglewood against the Los Angeles Rams. The San Jose Earthquakes open the MLS Cup playoffs on Sunday at Sporting Kansas City. The eighth-seeded Quakes will not play at home for the rest of the playoffs unless they reach the final against a lower-seeded Eastern Conference team.
The developments Monday came just as local college teams had found a routine after the novel coronavirus turned the 2020 seasons sideways.
San Jose State, at 4-0 off to its best start since 1955, relocated to Humboldt for 10 days last month to practice outside of Santa Clara County, which had issued ultra-restrict guidelines for activities. Stanford’s team went five miles north to Woodside High School in neighboring San Mateo County to hold a few preseason sessions.
Cal had to cancel its season opener Nov. 7 against Washington because one positive COVID-19 test led to the quarantining of the Golden Bears’ entire defensive line. The team played a rare Sunday game in Pasadena last weekend against UCLA after both UC schools’ scheduled opponents had to cancel because of an outbreak of COVID-19 cases among their respective opponents, Arizona State and Utah.
Cody, the county public health officer who has enacted some of the country’s most restrictive policies, expressed confidence Monday that South Bay citizens can help stop the spread of the virus after experiencing such rollbacks over the past 10 months.
“We’ve done this before,” she said. “We can do it again.”
Michael Nowels also contributed to this story.