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Council Approves Winter Schedule Update
December 23, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The Representative Council of the Michigan High School Athletic Association today approved an adjusted regular-season calendar for indoor Winter sports, which under current Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) orders may restart their seasons Saturday, Jan. 16.
All Winter sports activity had been paused by MDHHS on Nov. 18 to decrease spread of COVID-19. Girls and boys alpine skiing, with all activity taking place outdoors, was allowed by MDHHS to resume its season Monday (Dec. 21) and remains underway. If the MDHHS pause ends, indoor practices may begin again Jan. 16, with first competitions Jan. 22 for basketball, bowling, ice hockey and swimming & diving; and Jan. 25 for competitive cheer, gymnastics and wrestling.
The Council also approved one-year changes to competition limits in ice hockey and wrestling. In hockey, teams may play two games on one non-school day on two dates this season – with four games total during those two weeks when this opportunity is utilized. Wrestling teams are allowed two dates of competition per week this season, with competition limited to four teams at a site (and three matches per student per day of competition).
The Council also approved changes to the Winter tournament schedule pushing championships in most sports back to allow for regular seasons to be extended due to the late start. Following are the updated dates:
Boys and Girls Basketball
Girls Districts - March 8, 10 and 12; Boys Districts - March 9, 11 and 13
Girls Regionals - March 16 and 18; Boys Regionals - March 17 and 19
Girls QF, Semifinals and Finals - March 22 (QF), March 24 (Semifinals- 2 Sites) and March 26 (Finals)
Boys QF, Semifinals and Finals - March 23 (QF), March 25 (Semifinals- 2 Sites) and March 27 (Finals)
Bowling
Regionals - March 19-20
Finals - March 26-27
Competitive Cheer
Districts - March 5-6
Regionals - March 13
Finals - March 19-20
Gymnastics
Regionals - March 20
Finals - March 26-27
Ice Hockey
Regionals - March 15-20
Finals - March 25-27
Girls & Boys Swimming & Diving
Upper Peninsula Girls & Boys Swim & Dive Finals - Feb. 27
Lower Peninsula Boys Dive Regionals - March 18
Lower Peninsula Boys Finals - March 26-27
Wrestling
District Week - March 1
Regional Week - March 8
Team Finals - March 19-20
Individual Finals - March 26-27
Currently, the start dates of Spring sports are not affected. If current orders further delay activity beyond Jan. 16, the MHSAA staff and Representative Council will devise updated plans that address both Winter and Spring sports. If current orders are amended to allow activity to begin earlier, the first days of practice and competition will be moved up accordingly.
“The Council has been working to give schools as much local flexibility as possible while putting together their winter seasons schedules,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said. “This flexible planning has been required of us all since June, and we will continue to advocate for kids in all seasons with our continued goal of three seasons played to completion.”
![Jon Ross](/sites/default/files/2021-02/210222_Ross_2H.jpg)
Ross Named Broadcast & Media Coordinator
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 19, 2021
Jon Ross, bringing vast experience in video production and after working both as television media and in media relations, has been added to the Michigan High School Athletic Association staff as broadcast & media coordinator, a role in which he’ll focus primarily on video production, day-to-day efforts by the MHSAA Network and other communications duties.
Ross, who began at the MHSAA in late December, is taking on many of the duties formerly handled by John Johnson, who retired Dec. 18 after 33 years as communications director and then director of broadcast properties.
Ross’s variety of past experiences already have served the MHSAA well during his first weeks in his new position. In addition to generating “This Week in High School Sports” played on more than 100 radio stations statewide and the “MHSAA Minute” produced weekly with State Champs! Sports Network, Ross stepped in almost immediately to direct MHSAA Network broadcasts of Fall playoffs that were restarted in January and worked with FOX Sports Detroit for its production of the 8 and 11-Player Football Finals during Jan. 16 and Jan. 22-23, respectively.
“Jon has been a wonderful addition to our team,” MHSAA Executive Director Mark Uyl said. “His background in video production will serve the MHSAA well, and he’s done an outstanding job jumping in mid-stream with our Final fall tournaments being completed in January followed by an immediate move to winter events. Jon is a terrific addition to the MHSAA team.”
Ross began his media career in June 1999 at the first of three television sports department stops, a string that concluded with his tenure as a reporter and anchor from 2002-05 for WILX in Lansing.
Most recently, Ross served from Feb. 2018 until this past December as a communications representative and senior editor for the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning, for which he helped manage development of statewide campaigns including “Click It Or Ticket” and “Drive Sober, Get Pulled Over.” In addition to content creation, Ross worked in media relations including as occasional spokesperson for the OHSP, along with managing budgets and execution of federally-funded campaigns and serving as chairperson of the 2019 Michigan Traffic Safety Summit which drew nearly 500 attendees.
At the MHSAA, Ross’s responsibilities also will include providing content for the Association’s websites including the fan-focused Second Half, managing MHSAA.tv and eventually media credentialing and other on-site communications functions at MHSAA events.
“My time working in sports never seemed like work, and I’m excited for the opportunity to be part of what the MHSAA is building as it continues to expand coverage especially with video and other digital ventures,” Ross said. “I’ve known John Johnson going back to my time in the media, and I can appreciate even more now the work he did in making the MHSAA a national leader in promoting school athletics. I hope my experiences will help us build on what he created as we continue to engage more with our schools and specifically athletes, coaches, officials and families to tell our story.”
Ross was born in Escanaba and is a 1995 graduate of Saginaw Heritage High School and 1999 graduate of Michigan State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism with specialty in kinesiology.