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North Dakota Shrine Bowl canceled

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Health concerns and timing were factors that resulted in the cancellation of the annual North Dakota Shrine Bowl.

It was announced Thursday that, for the first time since its initial game in 1974, the Shrine Bowl has been canceled. Uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in calling off the games, which were scheduled to be played July 18 in Fargo.

The Shrine 9- and 11-man games match outstanding seniors in the 2019 high school season from eastern North Dakota against their counterparts from western North Dakota, with some players from western Minnesota added to all the teams.

“It was a very tough decision,’’ said Grand Forks Central High School football coach Bill Lorenz, who is chairman of the North Dakota Shrine Bowl’s 10-member committee. “These seniors have already had so much taken away from them. For a good portion of the players, this would have been the last time playing in a football game. But we felt (canceling the games) was necessary.’’

Safety was the primary concern in the Shrine Bowl, which also is sponsored by the North Dakota High School Coaches Association.

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“We would have had 132 players and 16 coaches all housed in one dormitory, in tight conditions in the locker rooms and dining facilities,’’ Lorenz said. “That was a major concern. We figured the risk was too great. If some kind of outbreak did occur, it would have left a negative image on the games.’’

While the event was canceled approximately two months before the games were to be played, Lorenz said organizing was already behind its normal schedule. Uniforms for all the players had to be ordered. Programs had to be planned and printed. Fund-raising activities had to be organized.

“This was the latest we could wait in order to get all the fundraising going,’’ Lorenz said. “For the actual games, we could have waited longer (to cancel). But there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes that goes into planning this.’’

Profits from the Shrine Bowl are split between the Shrine Hospital in the Twin Cities and a transportation fund to get patients and their families to the hospital.

Last year, the North Dakota Shrine Bowl raised approximately $65,000 for the charities.

“That’s right around the average for us,’’ Lorenz said. “We’re one of the top fund-raising Shrine Bowls in the country.’’

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Lorenz said a plan will be made to still honor the players selected to play in the games.

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