Andy's Rant: Forfeit epidemic sweeping the high school football landscape

There has been as rash of prominent programs throughout the east coast being slapped with forfeits and other punishments for various rules violations

Chaminade-Madonna vs Miami Central Football 2023 / Robson Lopes

Let's bring up the elephant in the room across the East Coast of the United States as it pertains to high school football: Forfeits due to rule violations are at an all-time high.

Don't think so? Better take a better look across social media these days on a daily basis.

It seems like every day that a new team is being slam with sanctions and forfeits because of some sort of violation of a state bylaw.

From Alabama to Florida to West Virginia, we've been seeing all-time highs in forfeitures just before state association's playoffs begin and the sanctions are seemingly becoming more and more severe.

This kind of forfeiture action isn't just limited to any which state, as numerous states all across the East Coast have lately been found guilty of using an ineligible, thus action has been taken by the respective state associations.

Starting with Alabama, Coosa Christian, Fultondale, and Charles Henderson were forced to forfeit games and each program will miss the AHSAA state playoffs. Coosa Christian went 9-1 in Alabama's Class 2A, but because of the use of an ineligible player will have to forfeit all of their wins this season and thus, miss the postseason.

AHSAA lowers the boom on three Alabama high school football teams

Over in South Carolina, Marlboro County was hit with sanctions by the SCHSL stemming from use of ineligible players and was banned from the postseason and hit with a $4,000 fine.

Marlboro County banned from football state playoffs by South Carolina High School League

Marlboro County football season comes to an abrupt end

Marlboro County football facing potential disciplinary action from SCHSL

Over in Georgia, Stockbridge, who competed for the AAAA state championship last season, looked to be the AAAA, Region 2 champion has to vacate its nine wins for using an ineligible player this season. That's another strong campaign down the drain due to a rule violation.

Stockbridge (Georgia) forced to forfeit all nine wins by GHSA due to use of ineligible player

Georgia's neighbor to the south, Florida, has seen an unprecedented number of programs slapped with sanctions due to the use of ineligible players. The programs include Miami Central, Miami Norland, The First Academy (Orlando) and Western. The Sunshine State has never seen so many handed down forfeits just a week before the state playoffs take place.

Miami Central (self-reported) and The First Academy took the biggest hits of any of the aforementioned Florida teams, with both having to vacate all of their wins and will miss the respective postseasons because of ineligibility issues.

The problem has escalated badly enough to where Miami Northwestern head coach Teddy Bridgewater, a former NFL veteran himself, venting on social media his frustrations about the state of where high school football is at down in South Florida.

“This high school crap has become the new lil league,” wrote Bridgewater who starred atMiami Northwestern, before going on to great success at the University Louisville and a 10 year NFL career. “I left the league and became a victim to this mess down here and I catch all the strays because I’m Coach. I didn’t walk away from millions to be associated with this high school drama. I did it to better the future of the sport in south Florida… I’ve been to the highest level and this level is peanuts to an elephant when you’ve reached the top. So you don’t get caught up in the small stuff when you’ve seen the top. However, this is the highest level for many so that’s why you have the telling and ‘whatever it takes to win’ mentality going on. But that’s the problem, not many people have won at the life God has given them so they live through the kids and make it about them and not their kids. Now we have grown men telling on KIDS!! Jeopardizing their future and their team’s future. As a man, what do you get out of that?? I pray MNW stays in the clear from all that’s going on because like I tell my coaches, I played 10 years in the league and never made any headlines and I’ll be damned if I let MNW have me caught up in some mess. I know it’s people waiting on the day it happens.”

Top-ranked The First Academy (Orlando) football team found guilty of rules violations

FHSAA slaps Miami Central with 8 forfeits; multiple sanctions

Miami Norland and Western forced to forfeit games due to ineligible players

Teddy Bridgewater unloads on the state of high school football

Virginia is seeing Hayfield face a 2-year ban from the VHSL playoffs due rule violations themselves. Even over in West Virginia, one of the state's top teams in Spring Mills, has been forced to forfeit multiple games due to rules violations. The forfeits due to ineligible players/rule violations is not limited to a certain state and is happening en masse across the East Coast.

Maryland state champion Fort Hill forfeits five football games

Three-time MPSSAA Class 1A state champion Fort Hill was forced forfeit five games for unknowingly using an ineligible player. Fortunately for the Sentinels, they still qualified for the state tournament and they will begin their quest for a fourth consecutive state championship this week.

Hayfield football facing a two-year ban from VHSL state playoffs

The cost of winning football games and the stress that coaches feel across the board at top tier programs is also at an all-time high, with teams feeling the daily pressure from communities, administrators to win championships on an annual basis.

Never has it seemed like it's more important to get out ahead of the Joneses' than ever before, but coaches have to ask themselves at what cost is winning games becoming a risk to their high school football team's entirety of a season.

A question we might never get a real answer to, but associations in every state are answering the bell to slam the hammer on those they find in violation of a rule.

Better question is how many more will it take to change the narrative moving forward?

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sblivefl