UPDATE | Football game postponed due to advisory

UPDATE 10/16/20 @ 10 p.m.

CABELL COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - COVID-19 continues wreaking havoc on high school athletic schedules.

Cabell Midland and George Washington were set to play football Saturday, but that game has been postponed.

Midland athletic director Chris Parsons tells WSAZ the George Washington principal reached out to the Midland principal Friday morning and said he was concerned about the stay-at-home advisory for Cabell County issued Thursday by the Cabell-Huntington Health Department.

That advisory was issued because of an increase in COVID-19 cases in Cabell County brought on by community spread, and the health department is recommending everyone consider staying at home as much as possible.

Parsons says the administrations of both schools came to the mutual decision to postpone the game as a precaution, even though both counties were in the gold last Saturday and would have been allowed to play under state regulations.

“We just figured to play on the safe side,” Parsons said.

George Washington has only played two games so far in 2020, because of the rough start Kanawha County had with the state’s color coding metrics.

Teams need to play at least four games in order to qualify for the playoffs. George Washington is scheduled to play Herbert Hoover Monday.

Huntington High did play their game against Winfield Friday night.

Kelly Bratcher, a mother of one of the players, says she feels comfortable letting her son play, despite the stay-at-home advisory.

“They’re very strict as far as the precautions, the social distancing, and masks,” she said. “They have everyone socially distance in the stands.”

Midland football coach Luke Salmons says it’s always frustrating to find out a game isn’t going to be played, but he says they can only worry about what they can control.

“There have been some teams that haven’t played any, and we’ve played four,” Salmons said.

Parsons says the volleyball game between George Washington and Midland scheduled for Saturday has been postponed as well.

He says every athletic program at Midland has had their schedule impacted by COVID except golf.

Parsons says they hope to reschedule the game with George Washington.

ORIGINAL STORY

Cabell Midland High School and George Washington High School have announced they are postponing their football game.

This is because of a stay-at-home advisory put into place in Cabell County Thursday evening.

School officials say the decision was made Friday morning on the side of caution.

There’s no word on when the game will be rescheduled.

Keep checking the WSAZ App for the latest information.

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