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FOOTBALL

More than 20 percent of NJ football teams have endured COVID-19 shutdowns

Greg Tufaro
Bridgewater Courier News

With three dozen high school football games being canceled or postponed this weekend due to coronavirus-related issues, more than 20 percent of scholastic gridiron programs statewide since the start of preseason practice in mid-September have had to suspend activity as a direct result of COVID-19. 

According to the research of Piscataway assistant coach John Thompson, who has been tracking COVID-19’s impact on high school football for USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey, a total of 72 teams (21.4 percent) have been shut down this fall because of the coronavirus.

Nearly 50 percent (49.4 percent) of 336 teams statewide have been affected, meaning they either had to shut down and/or cancel, postpone or reschedule a game.

As school districts have shifted from all-remote to hybrid or in-person instruction this month, an increasing number of coronavirus-related shutdowns occurred.

An average of 23 games were canceled or postponed over the first three weeks of the season.

A total of 27 teams from the 112-member North Jersey Super Football Conference have had to shut down, while 14 each from the 58-member Big Central Football Conference and 94-member West Jersey Football League have had to shut down.

The 28-member North Jersey Interscholastic Conference and the 43-member Shore Conference, with eight and seven teams, respectively, having to shut down, have been the state’s least affected leagues in terms of numbers but not percentage.

The percentage of shutdowns for each league in descending order, according to Thompson’s research, are: North Jersey Interscholastic Conference (28.6), Big Central Football Conference (24.1), North Jersey Super Football Conference (24.1), Shore Conference (16.3) and West Jersey Football League (14.9).

Eighteen games involving schools currently under a 14-day quarantine have already been canceled, postponed, rescheduled or are in question for Week 5.

The series of charts below detail Thompson’s findings.