Sports

California Football Coach Fired Hours Before Opener Due To Leaked Video Of Poor Treatment Of Repeat Rule Breaker

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California high school fires football coach.


A California high school football coach was fired hours before his team’s season opener. Adam Brubaker did not coach the Royal Highlanders on Friday night in Simi Valley.

That decision was made after practice footage went public showing Brubaker kick a ball into the groin of a player.

Brubaker said he’d had numerous conversations with the defensive player about tackling teammates during drills. An inability to follow those guidelines led to frustration, and ultimately, an ugly response from the head coach.

California high school football coach caught on tape.

Video captured Brubaker kicking a ball in the direction of one of his players on the practice field. He admitted it was in response to a failure to follow the rules.

“He’s a great kid, but he’s intense. We’ve had at least a dozen conversations about not taking kids to the ground during team drills. It got to the point where I’d had enough.”

Brubaker knew the optics would be poor if the footage got out. Still, he opted not to delete the video, which he believes might’ve compounded the situation.

“I had a chance to delete the practice film and I didn’t. I felt that tampering with the footage would be worse. I walked up after practice and apologized. I explained myself to him, and he accepted my apology.”

The coach was regretful of his actions, saying, “I kicked the ball and it hit him in the groin area and instantly I felt like I was going to pass out,” though he doesn’t believe the blowback would be quite the same had his luck been a touch better.

“I feel obviously a great deal of remorse for what happened. It’s a one in a million shot… Nothing has been harder in my life than the last three days. It has been an absolute trying time for me, my wife, my kids.”

That shot sent his player tumbling to the ground. He was in visible pain for an extended matter of moments.

Ultimately, it cost Brubaker his job.

Adam Brubaker will not keep his job.

Brubaker’s practice incident occurred last Wednesday. The decision to relieve him of his duties came hours before the season opening kickoff on Friday.

That means his run as Royal High School head football coach ends after just one season. Brubaker was hired last offseason before leading the Highlanders to a 3-7 season.

He had been gearing up for Year 2, which started on Friday against Monroe. Royal won the game handily, 62-0. Brubaker was not on the sidelines.

The school principal posted an update of the firing last week.

I want to provide you with an update regarding our football program. The District has completed its review of the incident from earlier this week. As a result, the leadership of Royal High School’s football program will immediately change. Cody MacArthur will serve as Head Coach for the Royal High School football team tonight. An interim head coach will be named shortly. Our focus now is to support our student-athletes, provide stability for the program, and help the team move forward together. We appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding throughout this process and look forward to supporting our players and coaches for the remainder of the season. Go Highlanders!

Royal High School plays football in Simi Valley, California, positioned between Santa Barbara and downtown Los Angeles. The Highlanders compete in the Tri County League of the Southern Section.

The school is located about 35 miles north of Malibu and is part of the Greater LA area. The football team ranks 797th in the state, having not posted a winning season since 2017-18.

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Royal High School on a map of California.

Assistant coach Cody MacArthur led the Highlanders to their season opening win on Friday night. An interim replacement is expected to be named soon.

Royal faces Carpinteria next week in Game 2.