Registration for basketball is kicking off in Russellville and Red Bay, and children and parents are excited to get back out on the court.

Russellville has had several youth sports play this fall, but this will be the City of Red Bay’s first youth sport this year after having to cancel Dixie Youth leagues because of COVID-19.

“We weren’t sure what kind of numbers to expect because of COVID, but I think everyone is really excited for things to start back up,” said Red Bay City Hall assistant Jennifer Garrett. “I think because this is the first sport we are going to get to have, we are expecting quite a few signups.”

Signups for youth basketball in Red Bay will be $50 per child through Nov. 20 or $60 per child Nov. 21-25. Registration can be done online at cityofredbay.org or in person at city hall.

Registration is open for ages 5-12. Ages 6 and younger will be co-ed, and ages 7 and older will have boys and girls teams.

Garrett said there are usually two teams in each age category, 10U and 12U, for boys and girls.

The teams will play against other Red Bay teams in their age bracket and will also play other schools. Teams will play at home and travel to other schools in Franklin County, and teams from Belmont, Miss., will travel to Red Bay.

Practices will start in December, and games will continue from the beginning of January through the end of February.

Precautions will be taken to ensure safety from COVID-19, and all teams will follow the same CDC guidelines high school basketball teams must follow.

Registration for Russellville basketball is open for ages 3-12 for $50 until Nov. 14 at the Ralph C. Bishop Center. Students will also receive registration forms at school and can return them to their teacher to sign up.

Teams will be divided into ages 3-5, 6-8, 8-10 and 10-12. Teams will play each other and will also travel to other teams within Franklin County.

The youngest age group will begin games the second week of December, and the rest of teams will begin after Christmas. Practices are expected to start at the beginning of December.

“I think everyone seems really excited,” said Russellville Parks and Recreation Director Donnie Flanagan. “Travel teams have been up and running, but for everyone else, they haven’t had much of a chance to get out and play with everything going on. I think there are a lot of people that are really just excited to begin getting back into sports.”

Flanagan said numbers for all sports have been up this year, and so far, teams are doing a great job following precautions.

He said there is not a good way of limiting the number of people inside the gym at any given time, but bleachers will be distanced, and everyone is encouraged to practice social distancing.

A mask is required to enter the building, and players will wear masks while they are not on the court.

“I think that is going to be our biggest challenge – just making sure everyone social distances,” Flanagan said. “We are excited about the season, and we hope that everyone helps us out.”