Carlynton Youth Football is going to “choose media that meets its needs” when it comes to coverage of Dequay Canton, the coach who engaged in a wild brawl with Keystone Oaks. He claims it was unchecked racism that triggered his outburst.
Both the coach and the program are cooperating fully with the Steel City Youth Football League investigation.
Meanwhile, Carlynton continues to stand by its youth football coach. Keystone Oaks has remained quiet.
A Pittsburgh youth football coach claims racism triggered a brawl.
Dequay Canton serves as head coach of the Carlynton Little Cougars D2 Team. The program is based out of the Carenegie and Crafton are of Pennsylvania, right outside of Pittsburgh.
Canton was involved with an unfortunate incident over the weekend. He got into an argument with a coach from Keystone Oaks, which led to a brawl that effectively cleared the sidelines for both sides. A parent named Ryan Crux posted the viral video of the incident on Facebook and gave the following account from the stands:
“Its the 4th quarter, we’re down 7-0 with 3:00 min left with the ball and a chance to tie the game, then this happens. The coaches are 💯% blame for this loss after they forfeit smh. Never thought i would have to protect my son from youth football coaches but here we are”
Carylnton Youth Football issued a formal (and permanent) ban to/of Crux on Tuesday.
NOTICE OF PERMANENT REMOVAL
Date: September 1, 2026
To: Ryan Dennis Crux
Re: Permanent Removal from CLC and SCYFL ActivitiesDear Mr. Crux,
This letter is formal written notice that, effective immediately, you are permanently removed from all Carlynton Little Cougars (CLC) and Steel City Youth Football League (SCYFL) activities and events, subject to the appeal rights below.
- PRIOR WARNING AND CONTINUED CONDUCT
You previously received verbal warnings concerning your conduct at the practice field and your interactions with individuals associated with the program. Despite those warnings and opportunities to correct the conduct, additional incidents occurred. The Board considered those incidents together, including public social-media activity and the circumstances surrounding the recent cane incident.- BY-LAW AND CODE OF CONDUCT VIOLATIONS
CLC Article VII, Sections 1–2: A warning is required for continued harassment or prohibited conduct; if ignored, the offending parent may be suspended and removed pending Board action.
CLC Article VIII, Section 4(a): The Board may assess any penalty it deems necessary to protect and preserve the Organization.
CLC Article VIII, Section 5 / Article XI, Section 1: Participants must follow the Code of Conduct, and violations of CLC or League rules may result in discipline up to and including termination.
SCYFL Article XI, Section 11.2: Prohibits conduct including verbal abuse and profanity.
SCYFL Article XI, Section 11.2(F): Identifies as unacceptable any conduct involving social media in a manner detrimental to the SCYFL.
The Board determined that the continued conduct, considered collectively, violates both CLC and SCYFL standards and warrants permanent removal.- BOARD ACTION
Permanent removal: You are permanently removed from all current and future CLC and SCYFL activities and events. You may not attend, participate in, coach, volunteer, represent, or otherwise take part in CLC- or SCYFL-related practices, games, tournaments, meetings, team activities, or sponsored events.
Premises and designated areas: You are expected to refrain from entering areas designated for CLC or SCYFL activities for the duration of this removal.- APPEAL RIGHTS
Under CLC Article VIII, Section 3, a parent or guardian dismissed for conduct reasons may appeal to the Board of Directors:Written appeal: Must be submitted within five (5) days of the formal dismissal.
— Sean Flanagan, President, Carlynton Little Cougars
Acknowledgment: The Board will acknowledge receipt within three (3) days.
Appeal hearing: A quorum of the Board will conduct the hearing within ten (10) days of the appeal confirmation.
The permanent removal remains in full effect during the appeal process unless otherwise determined by the Board.
Not too long thereafter, the coach at the forefront of controversy offered a different account of what happened. Canton “encourages everyone to reserve judgement until all facts have been reviewed and the complete story is understood.” He claims the outburst was triggered by racism. Keystone Oaks allegedly used the ‘N’ word toward the Carlynton players, who are predominantly Black.
Canton claims he was ignored when he brought the concerns to the officials. He was and is shocked that such racist language was used by/toward 8- and 9-year-old kids.
Canton and Carlynton are cooperating fully with the Steel City Youth Football League investigation. However, we may not get the full story from either party.
Carlynton Youth Football is actively seeking bias media.
Colin Dunlap, a Pennsylvania-based radio personality with KDKA Pittsburgh 100.1FM/AM1020, has been all over this story from the jump. He helped to reveal Canton’s history of violence toward kids and reached out to Carlynton Youth Football for comment on Monday. The organization gave him a strange reply.
Carlynton says that it will “choose the media that meets our needs,” which directly contradicts its own concern regarding bias. I understand what the program is trying to say. There will be media outlets that do not present the full story and/or take up against them. Those outlets won’t give fair representation to Dequay Canton.
As a result, Carlynton will seek coverage from outlets that will do so. It will not offer information or interviews to every source. Which, by definition, means Carlynton will seek bias. Even if the approach does make some sense, it is counterintuitive.
By only “choosing media that meets its needs,” Carlynton is actively seeking bias. Weird, right?