Beech and Rockvale received their official reprimand from TSAA prior to the start of the high school football regular season in Tennessee. Their respective punishments stems from a brawl during the preseason.
The incident took place on July 31.
Both high school football programs tried to get ahead of the governing body with self-imposed penalties. They were not able to avoid additional discipline.
Beech is on probation for the upcoming high school football season because of the brawl.
Beech High School is located in Hendersonville, Tennessee. Founded in 1980, it enrolls approximately 1,500 students in Grades 9-12. The Buccaneers compete in TSAA Division I, Class 5A, Region 6. They are one of the better high school football teams in the state over the last 20 years but they have not won a state championship since 2012.
Beech has not finished with a losing record in the last decade and made the state championship game as recently as 2022. It finished at 11-2 in each of the last two seasons under head coach Anthony Crabtree.
Unfortunately, the Bucs will begin the 2026 season at a disadvantage.
Beech is scheduled to begin the regular season at home against Green Hill on August 21. However, multiple players will not debut until Week 2 against Mount Juliet because of a one-game suspension. TSAA announced the full punishment on Wednesday.
According to the Volunteer State’s governing body for high school athletics, the Buccaneers will serve one year of probation and must pay a $500 fine. The sanctions stem from a fight that broke out in the handshake line during a preseason scrimmage against Rockvale. The suspensions were self-imposed.
Rockvale was already on probation!
TSAA provided an official’s report that stated the following reasons for the punishment, which applies to both Rockvale and Beech:
“A brawl broke out during the handshake line, involving multiple players from both teams. As a result, (unsportsmanlike conduct) penalties were assessed to all players/non-players/bench personnel from both teams.”
The former will feel the punishment more than the latter. The Rockets were already on probation for a self-reported recruiting violation. As a result of the brawl, TSAA extended its probationary period through 2027-28.
Rockvale High School, which is located closer to Murfreesboro, enrolls ~2,220 students. The Rockets compete in Division I, Class 6A, Region 3. They are not as good as the Buccaneers. They have only finished with a winning record one time since the program was founded 2019.
To make matters worse, Rockvale will now begin the season at a disadvantage. It also self-imposed multiple suspensions that stem from the brawl, in addition to the extended probation and $500 fine.
The Rockets will also begin their regular season on August 21. The players who won’t be on the field are not yet disclosed.