How many of you have driven halfway to a store only to realize your mask is in the other car?

Me too and it’s happened more than once.

Yes, it’s very frustrating. Every time I’ve done it I’ve wanted to be that rule-breaker and walk into the store with my shirt pulled up above my nose, not worrying about how I’d get my credit card out of my wallet with one hand while holding the jug of milk with the other when checking out.

Instead, each time I drove home to get my mask.

I didn’t want to be that rule-breaker and just as importantly, didn’t want my kids to see me be one.

As practices and even games begin, there are going to be rules that the players, coaches and parents are going to be asked to follow.

Like a lot of things during this pandemic, there will be mixed opinions on the safety guidelines that leagues or teams establish and ask everyone to obey.

Coaches now have even more on their plate as they make sure to keep players socially distant and equipment constantly sterilized, all while trying to get everyone back into football shape – both mentally and physically.

What coaches don’t need is a parent asking them to make an exception because their player left his mask at home or to let them practice even though their temperature is a degree above the required minimum level.

It might seem petty to make a player go home when they arrive without a mask even if it’s just to be worn during water breaks. But if coaches don’t, all of a sudden one player without a mask becomes two, and so on.

Coaches have a bigger responsibility than ever before. They need to do everything they can to not only keep their players safe, which they always strive for when practice planning, but also healthy, which they often can’t control. This summer, it’s more vital than ever that they try.

As parents, we need to make sure we do our part, and that starts by not being that parent who tries to circumvent the system. After all, just like any game plan, for the coronavirus-prevention plan to work, everyone has to be on the same page.  

USA Football worked with various medical and football experts to create their Return to Youth Football 2020 guidelines for parents and leagues. Visit their website to learn more.

Stay safe and healthy.

Jon Buzby has been involved in and writing about youth sports for the past 30 years with perspectives as a parent, coach and board member. Jon is an award-winning writer and his latest book, “Coaching Kids Made Easier,” is available on Amazon. Send comments or future blog topics you'd like to see to JonBuzby@hotmail.com and follow him @YouthSportsBuzz on Twitter.