It’s time to give our student-athletes in Oregon a chance to play again.

The Oregon School Activities Association executive board met virtually on Monday to discuss their options for sports in the upcoming Season Two. Football, volleyball, soccer and cross country are all scheduled to begin practices this month with competitions beginning in March. But for football and volleyball, the state guidelines are restricting a majority of Oregon.

Football is prohibited across the state as a full-contact sport, while volleyball is allowed to practice and compete in counties that are below an extreme risk level. Douglas County is one of only about a dozen of Oregon’s 36 counties that meet that metric.

It’s going to take changes from the state – not the OSAA –  to open up opportunities for our student-athletes. Those changes could come this week, just in time for the high school football season to begin.

I’ve been accepting of restrictions, so far. Would I have liked to see high school sports in action earlier? Absolutely. But I was understanding of the process, believing that the state has been listening to the OSAA and other advocates and digesting the information that has been gathered over the past 11 months.

OSAA executive director Peter Weber says that he believes high school sports can be held with minimal risks. Even full-contact sports like football. His organization has studied research, conducted surveys of other states that have held sports seasons and this is his conclusion.

And it’s not just him. Washington and California are starting to ease restrictions as well.

While there are many issues to handle during this pandemic, the time is now to give youth sports its considerations.

There will be sacrifices for sure. Limited or no fans. Mask wearing and increased social distancing rules. But I believe the evidence and people saying that it can be done and I hope those at the top will take the time this week to believe in it too.

*This is a commentary on current topics in sports by Off The Wall host Joey Keeran. These opinions do not necessarily reflect those of The Score 92.3 FM/1490 AM or its parent company Brooke Communications. Get more sports commentary during Off The Wall, Mondays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on The Score 92.3 FM/1490 AM*