JSerra took a reckless gamble and got away it.
The Lions suited up a player for its varsity game Friday against Santa Margarita who, from all appearances, was ejected from the previous day’s JV game. An ejected player can’t be at the next game – in uniform or not, anywhere in a gym, on a field or in a stadium for the next contest. If the athlete shows up in any way at a game, the athlete’s team must forfeit that game.
Santa Margarita informed the CIF-Southern Section of the potential violation after the varsity game, in which the player in question did not participate, which was a JSerra win, 35-28. The CIF-SS office checked it out, and decided to let the result stand and not assess a forfeiture.
The CIF-SS accepted JSerra’s explanation that an expulsion report had not been filed, so it did not know if the player’s ouster was a de facto expulsion, and agreed that JSerra did its best to get clarification from the JV game officials, which never came. The CIF-SS office admitted that it, too, was not as helpful as it could have been in helping JSerra acquire definitive information.
JSerra not having to forfeit the game is a great result. The Lions players who did what was required to earn the victory will not be penalized.
Many times forfeitures are the result of clerical or other mistakes by an adult coach or adult administrator. The kids suffer because an adult messed up.
The head-scratcher, though, is that JSerra was so careless.
Sure, a coach wants to go into a big game like a Trinity League opener with a high-quality depth chart. But it’s not worth potentially forfeiting a win to suit up a backup player when the rules clearly prohibit that player from suiting up.
JSerra coach Jim Hartigan is in his fourth decade as a CIF head coach and he’s JSerra’s athletic director, too. He is familiar with the CIF rules and constitution.
It’s justice not just for the JSerra kids, but maybe for the JSerra program, too. The Lions did not get the Pac-5 Division at-large berth they deserved in last year’s playoffs, a berth that went to Crespi of Encino which got pulverized in the first round by Mission Viejo, 45-0.
And several years ago, JSerra was tossed by the Orange County public schools into the Trinity League, which was like dropping a goldfish into a piranha pond.
So maybe JSerra deserved this break.
Taking a look around Orange County high school sports:
• Was that an uncool move by Santa Margarita, which tried to get a forfeit win out of its loss to JSerra because an ineligible JSerra player – who did not play – suited up? It is true that all rules must be followed and ignoring one violation could lead to more. On the other side, the ineligible player did not play a single down so it’s harsh to try to smack down the JSerra kids who won the game the right way.
• The Mater Dei-Servite football game tonight at Cerritos College is sold out. It will be streamed live online at foxsportswest.com. Calling the play by play will be Paul Westphal, the best guy for the assignment because of his deep knowledge of those teams in particular and county football in general.
• A plan to have CIF-SS playoff divisions based solely on competitive equity is gaining momentum. The concept has been endorsed by the CIF-SS Executive Committee, a group that always has prominent say about section rules and policy.
• If the plan becomes reality, starting with the 2016-17 school year, school teams would be grouped into playoff divisions based solely upon competitive equity. Teams’ league affiliation would only come into play when “strength of league” is used to evaluate those teams.
• The CIF State Championship Football Bowl Games might expand to 13 state championship games from the current five. The proposal would have 48 sections champions from the state’s 10 sections competing in the regional round. Regional winners would play in the championship games that would be played at three or four venues spaced across the state. Currently, the five state championship football games are played over two days at the StubHub Center in Carson.
• The 13 divisions would include two Open divisions, one for large schools and others for small schools (1,250 enrollment or smaller), and divisions would be labeled 1AA, 1A, 2AA, 2A, 3AA, 3A, 4AA, 4A, 5AA, 5A and 6AA.
• That proposal gets a first reading at the CIF State Federated Council meeting Oct. 27 in Ontario. CIF State associate executive director Ron Nocetti said the proposal could be voted upon at the Council’s late-January meeting or could still be in the discussion process at that point.
• There is a State Commissioners Committee meeting coming up at the new Levis Stadium in Santa Clara, but Nocetti said that is no indication that state bowl games would be played there. The state likes the mid-range capacity (27,000) that exists at StubHub. The CIF deal with Stub Hub ends in December.
• Touchdown passes are coming in big bunches. Brethren Christian quarterback Conner Miller threw a county single-game record of eight touchdown passes in a game against Aquinas of San Bernardino on Oct. 4. Newport Harbor quarterback Cole Norris threw six last week in a win over Huntington Beach. Miller broke the record of seven that had been shared by Conner Manning of El Toro, who did it in 2012, Danny Warden of Brethren Christian, who did it in 2003, and Burt Call of Capistrano Valley, now Mater Dei’s baseball coach, who did it in 1982.
• Former Trabuco Hills golf coach and athletic director Gary Sabella is a first-year women’s golf coach at College of the Desert. College of the Desert is 48-0.
• Recent college commitments by county baseball players: San Clemente outfielder Trevor Beard, to Purdue; Orange Lutheran shortstop Josh Bissonette, to Pacific; and JSerra first baseman Kyle Stewart, to Navy.
• Mo Haneef, longtime track coach and father of multi-sport star Tayyiba Haneef-Park, died last week. He coached at Laguna Hills, where Tayyiba was county athlete of the year, and was a track and cross country meet timer. A memorial service is 3 p.m. on Sunday at the Pyramid on the Long Beach State campus.
• Tickets for the Edison-Fountain football game, Oct. 31 at Orange Coast College, will only be available in advance. They go on sale Oct. 27 at both schools. “The Battle for the Bell” is Fountain Valley’s home game.
Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com
