Syracuse (N.Y.) City School District has petitioned the State Supreme Court to intervene in an effort to have the Institute of Technology football team placed back in the sectional playoffs.
The school district was informed earlier this week by the section that ITC had used an ineligible player during its 22-14 quarterfinal victory over Vernon Verona Sherrill last weekend and had been forced to forfeit the game. According to the New York State Public High School Athletic Association's rules, any player that has been ejected must sit out the next game.
According to Spectrum Local News, the player's ineligibility is in dispute due to, according to a petition to the State Supreme Court, the status of an ejection that occurred in ITC's regular-season finale against Indian River on Oct. 25. In the petition, the Syracuse City School District claims video shows that the player ejected "committed no foul on the play," and the referee who threw the penalty flag leading to the ejection was "not part of the action the official was observing at the time."
The district is also arguing that an official's report of the ejection had not been filed by game time against VVS, and that due to this, the petition claims, Section III executive director Jason Czarny said an appeal of the ejection was moot because "without an officials' report, the ejection did not occur."
All parties involved in the case have been summoned to the Onondaga County Courthouse on Friday for a hearing to settle the issue. Should the judge rule in favor of ITC, the team will proceed to the Friday night's playoff game against New Hartford. If the judge rules against the team, ITC would exit the playoff and VVS would take on New Hartford.
The school district is also rallying support for the athletes from the community.
"We're hoping that people can get the facts straight and come to the right decision in time, so these kids can enjoy what they've worked so hard for," said Anthony Heard, a family member of one of the ITC players.
