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FALL SPORTS SACKED
CCCAA is moving all JUCO sports to spring season
JUCO football 2020
Former Delta College player Xavier Johnson tries to spin out of a tackle against visiting Modesto Junior College during a game in 2018. - photo by SEAN KAHLER

The California Community College Athletic Association announced Thursday that all sports for the 2020-21 academic year — even football — will be moved to the spring season.
The approval comes one week before the originally-planned decision date of July 17. The CCCAA Board of Directors had come up with three alternate schedules — dubbed the Conventional, Contact/Non-Contact and Contingency plans — to choose from on July 17. The Board essentially went with “Plan D,” the most drastic of the options that puts all JUCO sports on hold for the remainder of the 2020 calendar year.
Two weeks ago, the Central Valley Conference — which includes Columbia College, Fresno City and Merced College — cancelled all fall sports ahead of the CCCAA’s decision. San Joaquin Delta College in Stockton and Modesto JC compete in the Big 8 Conference.
The CCCAA has 110-member colleges and approximately 24,000 athletes.
“I know I speak for the entire CCCAA Board that moving Fall athletics to Spring 2021 is a huge disappointment,” Board Chair and President of Pasadena City College Dr. Erika Endrijonas said in a statement.
“However, the need to keep our student-athletes and the amazing coaches and athletic trainers who work with them safe was simply the only option available with the virus spiraling out of control across the state.”
The Contingency Plan has been tweaked. Men’s and women’s cross country and women’s golf were originally penciled in for the fall season, but they’ll instead join the remaining 24 sports in the spring.
Schedules will be reduced by 30 percent of the maximum number of allowable competition dates per sport. The postseason includes regional championships, but state finals have been eliminated for 2020-21.
The sports will be split into two phases in the spring. Practice begins for the early spring season on Jan. 18 with competition beginning Feb. 13 for football and on Feb. 5 for cross country, basketball, women’s golf, soccer, women’s volleyball, water polo and wrestling. The regional playoffs start April 10 and ends April 17.
The late spring sports season consists of badminton, baseball, beach volleyball, men’s golf, softball, swim and dive, tennis, track and field and men’s volleyball. Practices begin March 27, first games are on April 10, regional playoffs start on June 16 and the final competitions are slated for June 23.