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Crushed. Devastated. Heartbroken. Angry.

These were some of the words used to describe the feelings of senior high school athletes on Monday afternoon. Gov. Roy Cooper announced schools in North Carolina would remain closed until at least May 15, shortly after that, the NCHSAA announced high school athletics are suspended through May 18.

Right before Gov. Cooper began speaking at his press conference, I emailed the NCHSAA to ask for a comment about what would happen to sports if school was closed for the rest of the year. I had sources telling me the governor was going to extend the school closure, so I was trying to be prepared. I got a reply as the governor was speaking. Commissioner Que Tucker said, "While it is important to note that at times, interscholastic athletics can and do go on during school closures, it is difficult to imagine them being resumed if, to prevent further spread of the virus, Governor Cooper were to close schools for the remainder of the academic year."

May 15 isn't technically the remainder of the academic year, but it leaves little time -- if any -- for sports to take place. The fact the NCHSAA only extended its suspension until May 18 gives me hope though, and it should give you hope too. If we can turn the tide against COVID-19 by then, it seems like the NCHSAA is committed to at least trying to give everyone something to play for. It would have made perfect sense for the NCHSAA to cancel everything today, but they didn't do that. If only for the seniors, I hope we can find a way for everyone to at least play one more time, even if we can't crown state champions.

It's not much, but the NCHSAA response today at least gives us a little bit of hope.

NCHSAA extends suspension until May 18

As I said above, the NCHSAA has extended its sports suspension until May 18. Read the quotes from Commissioner Que Tucker though. It sure sounds like the NCHSAA wants to do everything it can to give kids a chance to play again this year. Hopefully the virus will cooperate.

Key Points

This is a hard, disappointing, and even sad time for many student-athletes, especially seniors. If you're struggling with things, check out this article from Positive Coaching Alliance about coping with the loss of sports during the pandemic.
The NFHS Network has launched two new free streaming features that you can take advantage of while you're stuck at home. One looks back at some of the best games on the NFHS Network, the other shows some of the top college/professional athletes while they were in high school.
Cleveland HS running back Omarion Hampton is now a four-star prospect.

Coronavirus isn't slowing recruitment for Millbrook's Diego Pounds

Offers are rolling in, often times multiple per day, for Millbrook OL Diego Pounds, despite the fact that in-person recruiting has been suspended. Kyle Morton did an interview with Diego and filed this story (plus watch the video interview).

UNC offers Kinston forward Dontrez Styles

The Kinston-to-UNC pipeline is strong, and now the Tar Heels are in the mix for another Viking. Dontrez Styles picked up an offer from Roy Williams on Monday.

HSOT Honors: Winter sports finalists named

Finalists for HSOT Honors were named on Monday in boys basketball, girls basketball, indoor track, swimming & diving, and wrestling.

What's next?

Tuesday will be a big day on HighSchoolOT.

At 10 a.m., I'll be joining J. Mike Blake in a LIVE, socially distanced edition of HighSchoolOT Round Table. We're going to talk about realignment and my realignment proposal I released last week. If you have questions, we'll take them on Twitter and answer as many as we can.

Tuesday will also mark the start of some new content we'll have on HighSchoolOT focused on the senior athletes impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and sports suspension. If you're a senior athlete and want to share your story, feel free to email at nstevens@wral.com or shoot me a DM on Twitter.

I don't think we're going to have anymore news about the future of high school athletics for a few weeks now, but we'll of course continue to monitor that.

Until next time.

Nick

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