California small-school high school football power to forfeit Friday due to fight, ending 97-game league win streak

Four-time state champion McClymonds will be forced to forfeit Friday's game after brawl last week with league rival Fremont

McClymonds coach Michael Peters is back for another dominating season but his Warriors will be challenged mightily in 2024 / Photo: Eric Taylor

One of California's most dominating runs in league play will come to an end on Friday before the game even kicks off.

That's because the game won't even be played. At least that's how it stands now.

McClymonds of Oakland, a four-time state champion which has overcome small rosters over the last 15 seasons to win 72 straight Oakland Athletic League games and 25 more against OAL teams in playoff play, will forfeit its Friday game at Castlemont.

As first reported by the Bay Area News Group, McClymonds and Fremont of Oakland will have multiple players suspended for the rest of the regular season due to a brawl that occurred during the second quarter of its game on Friday.

The decision was announced by Oakland Section commissioner Franky Navarro earlier this week.

"The message has to be strong," he told reporter Joseph Dycus. "This type of behavior is not going to be tolerated."

Following McClymond's third touchdown early in the second quarter on Oct. 14 — the Warriors led 21-0 — a Fremont player threw a punch after being tackled on a kickoff by two McClymonds players.

From there, according to accounts, players from both teams engaged in fighting and the game was called. McClymonds was awarded a 21-0 victory. McClymonds coach Peters said seven of his players will be suspended for six games, though he plans to appeal.

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The Warriors (3-3) only have 19 players on their roster so they plan to bring up several from the junior varsity. It won't be in time for this week's game, so the game was forfeited.

With a JV team of only 24 for McClymonds, one of the seasons might have to be scrapped, though Peters said he plans to appeal all rulings.

Despite its tiny varsity roster, McClymonds has competed with many of the Bay Area's best teams this season, beating North Coast Section's No. 14 team Bishop O'Dowd, 28-14, and losing tough games to a pair of Central Coast Section powers, No. 6 Riordan (35-14) and No. 1 Saint Francis (34-14).

Part of the team's early-season success was based on the return of Peters, who coached at his alma mater since 1993, the last 12 as a head coach. During that time as head coach, he piled up a 122-18 record but decided to step down after the 2023 season to spend more time with family.

But when no one stepped up to take over the Warriors in the spring, Peters returned to coach the team. The low player turnout was because several players had transferred due to Peters' absence.

His return and the team's play was impressive before Friday's fight. Peters said so many players were on the field during the melee because it was after a special teams transition. Players were shuffling in and off the field.

That said: "We shouldn't have conducted ourselves in that way," Peters said. "That's not Mack football."

Earlier in the season, Peters lauded his team's resilience and toughness, which explained how the Warriors could stand toe-to-toe against the region's best with just 19 players. McClymonds' enrollment, the lowest in the OAL, is about 250.

"That's just the McClymonds way," Peters said two weeks ago. "Our guys are going to fight through no matter what the adversity."

He wasn't talking about that kind of fighting.

For clarification, Cal-Hi Sports, the record keeper of California High School sports since 1979, only considers on-the-field results when referencing win streaks. A forfeit loss does not end its league streak, according to the publication, which also doesn't count league playoff results.

Look for updates on this story throughout week