Bad weather could force football delays, cancelations

Posted Dec 4, 2009 by Nick Williams

Updated Dec 4, 2009 at 03:32 PM

As several high schools throughout the state prepare for state semifinal and region championship games tonight, some may be wondering how the weather will affect those games.

According to weather.com “rain will fall right along the gulf coast eastward into Florida. Rains will be heavy at times today and tonight over central Florida as a slow-moving front will focus lines of showers and thunderstorms over and over again on the same areas. Some localized flooding will be possible in places like Tampa, Clearwater and Sarasota where rain gauges may fill up with over 4 inches of rain.”

FHSAA spokesperson Christina Alvarez said the decision to delay or cancel a game tonight rests with each school’s principal and the game officials. However, she said there is no FHSAA policy in place that determines how late a postseason football game can start. If any of tonight’s games are rained out, she said they must be played as early as possible on Saturday. Games cannot be played Sunday and Alvarez said Monday night is an unlikely option.

“According to National Federation [high school] rules, the game has to be finished,” Alvarez said. “Even if there is 10 seconds left and they call it, they have to come back Saturday and play it, unless the team that is losing forfeits.”