Dixie State Athletics Postpones Trailblazers’ 2020 Football Season Until Spring

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Dixie State Athletics announced that the Trailblazers’ 2020 football season has been postponed until the spring of 2021 “due to the continuing developments of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the intercollegiate athletics landscape and the nation as a whole.”

The athletic department at Dixie State University announced the decision on Wednesday, August 12. The Trailblazers were scheduled to open the 2020 football season against Southern Utah on September 5.

“As difficult as a decision like this is, it is the right call. There are so many factors involved, but our top priority that we cannot waiver on is the health and well-being of our student-athletes,” said Dixie State’s Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Dr. Jason Boothe. “As our schedule of games this fall evaporated the last couple weeks, we tried to get something together so our athletes could play, but as we went through each option, there were still too many unknowns and big questions. While we felt comfortable with playing in terms of the safety of our student-athletes, ultimately, the only thing to do was to postpone to the spring when hopefully we can enjoy a much safer environment.”

Dixie State Athletics postpones 2020 @DixieState_FB season #DixieBlazers #WeAreONE #ontherise https://t.co/02TxG1sO5N

— Dixie State Athletics (@DixieAthletics) August 12, 2020

“First of all, I am very proud of our student-athletes and how they have responded to these uncertain circumstances. They bought in to the prospect of playing and stayed positive, worked tremendously hard and prepared for a season that we all wish we could play,” Trailblazers head coach Paul Peterson said. “As time has gone by, our options to play have dwindled, despite our university leaders best efforts otherwise,” Peterson went on to say. “Our student-athlete’s physical and mental health are our top concerns at this time. We will use this semester to develop in the classroom and to continue to serve our community. I hope that the nation can heal, our government leaders can make good decisions and we can all get better as a result these trying times. Go Trailblazers.”

Officially Division 1! #NCAA #WeAreONE #D1XIE #DixieBlazers pic.twitter.com/LE4G5m9FBq

— Dixie State Football (@DixieState_FB) July 1, 2020

The 2020 football season was slated to be the Trailblazers’ inaugural season as a member of the NCAA’s Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) after officially becoming a D-I program on July 1.