Gainesville High School had its high school football playoff game in Georgia cut short due to a brawl for the second time in two weeks. However, this time it involved the girls flag football team and not the boys tackle team.
The ladies learned from their male counterparts!
Unlike what happened two weeks ago, the Red Elephants stayed on the sideline as their flag football opponent charged onto the field during the fight. They were ultimately ruled as the victors by forfeit.
Gainesville High School was involved with multiple brawls.
Gainesville High School is located in Gainesville, Georgia, about 40 miles northeast of Athens. It enrolls approximately 2,400 students in Grades 9-12.
The boys tackle team was involved with a wild brawl during the playoffs on the Friday prior to Thanksgiving. Nearly 40 players were suspended for their next game by the Georgia High School Association because of their role in the violent incident, which primarily stemmed from leaving the bench. That created a messy legal battle over the holiday weekend.
Gainesville filed for a temporary injunction that allowed its suspended players to compete. The GHSA filed an appeal that put the game right back on hold.
After delaying the next round of the playoffs by an additional week, the GHSA ultimately backed off of its initial stance. All of the suspended players were reinstated. No. 4-seed Gainesville upset top-ranked Hughes in the state quarterfinals on Friday night.
All of the drama that played out in court is in the past.
The girls flag football team learned a lesson!
Gainesville High School does not only compete in tackle football. The girls flag football team punched its ticket to the Division-I state playoffs as the top-ranked team in Area 8.
The Red Elephants won their first round matchup in dominant fashion by a final score of 32-0 to advance to the second round on Thursday night. They came face-to-face with Carver-Columbus.
Unfortunately, their game was cut short during the third quarter— much like the tackle team.
Carver was scrambling with the ball on offense when a Gainesville player took a hard block. She pushed back at her opponent, which escalated the situation. Punches started flying. It was a full-blown fist fight.
The entire Tigers bench ran onto the field to get in on the action. The Red Elephants stayed on the sideline.
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— Fired Football Coaches of Georgia (@FiredFBCoaches) December 5, 2025
The Gainesville Red Elephant flag football team was reportedly “just defending their sisters” in tonight’s playoff game.
The GHSA will likely consider moving Gainesville to Region 1 7A next season as punishment. pic.twitter.com/pQJ8kjUN8Q
Gainesville’s behavior presented a stark contrast to their male counterparts. The tackle players left the sideline to join the brawl and got suspended. The flag players did not move.
As a result, Georgia high school football officials ruled in favor of the Red Elephants.
Only four players were ejected for Gainesville. Carver lost the majority of its roster to ejection.
Officials ultimately determined the latter did not have enough players to continue the contest and the Tigers were forced to forfeit. The Red Elephants advanced to the third round with a 1-0 victory.