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A high school football program in the state of Georgia has received some positive news regarding a mass suspension for a playoff game.
Gainesville High saw four players regain postseason status ahead of a quarterfinal matchup against Langston Hughes. Unfortunately, 30+ will still be held out of action.
The suspensions relate to a massive brawl that forced a win over Brunswick to be called early. Gainesville led 42-0 in the third quarter of play. The game was well in hand.
Pushing and shoving followed a failed deep shot by the Brunswick offense. Chaos quickly unfolded.
The melee started near the quarterback. Helmets were ripped from heads. Punches were thrown.
Coaches and security were able to defuse the situation after minutes of chaos. The game was eventually called before the start of the fourth quarter. For Gainesville, a postseason punishment would follow.
39 players were suspended for the Georgia High School playoffs.
Gainesville High School is located in Gainesville, Georgia, about 40 miles northeast of Athens. It plays at the Class 5A level under the governance of the Georgia High School Association.
The GHSA announced its ruling on the brawl Monday morning after a weekend-long investigation. It determined that 39 Gainesville High School football players would be unavailable for the next contest.
Head coach Josh Niblett was not thrilled with that decision. He placed blame on Brunswick for starting the fight.
“You watch the two helmets get ripped off, you don’t see our kids throw a punch, you don’t see our kids push the kid, you see our guys step in between them and then get his helmet ripped off and then the guy jabs him with a punch. And they still back away,” he said in a statement to 11Alive.
“Hey, if there was a guy that threw a punch, he should be ejected, I don’t condone that at all. There’s defending yourself, there’s other guys trying to defuse the deal, but then at the same time we have 11 defensive players on the opposite side of the field that may jog down there but they’re on the opposite side of the field they get ejected. I mean, they’re just on the field. The two guys who had their helmets ripped off and punched that got waylaid, they got ejected. I don’t understand what they are supposed to do.”
Four suspensions have been lifted.
Gainesville City Schools superintendent Jeremey Williams announced the decision to appeal the 39-player suspension earlier this week. As a result, the school was able to get four players back for the matchup against Langston Hughes.
The board did approve two different motions which each lifted the ejections and suspensions of two players, for a total of four. A second motion to do the same for eight additional players was denied.
Unfortunately, Niblett’s request to have suspensions delayed until next season were denied. Gainesville will be without 35 players in its next postseason matchup.
The school will also be fined for the football team’s involvement. It hopes to overcome the odds and advance to the Final Four round without help from the majority of its roster.