The high school football season will be pushed back one week and most other state tournament sports games will be postponed until Monday while the state recovers from Hurricane Sandy, the NJSIAA announced Wednesday.
If high school football teams want to play this upcoming weekend, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association will not stop them, said executive director Steve Timko, but all other games scheduled for this weekend can be played next week.
The state high school football playoffs will be moved to the following schedule.
First round: Nov. 16-17
Second round: Nov. 30-Dec. 1
Championship games: Dec. 7-8.
This schedule would allow Thanksgiving games to be played as scheduled.
Steve Timko, executive director of the NJSIAA, said cross country sectionals and gymnastics tournaments have been postponed to next weekend. He said the boys and girls soccer, girls volleyball and field hockey tournaments will begin on Monday. But the NJSIAA will allow schools to play soccer, field hockey or volleyball games before Monday if both schools agree.
Timko said the NJSIAA is still trying to determine the sites and dates of championships games and they could be subject to change because of the rescheduling.
"I think we are trying to be very sensitive to what the schools are going through and the problems the schools have," Timko said. "We hope the schools will work together and work with us to come to a solution."
