By Marty Cook
LITTLE ROCK - The Class 3A
high school football playoffs were indefinitely postponed after Lamar reclaimed its postseason berth.
Lamar filed for an injunction Thursday against the Arkansas Activities Association in front of Judge Gordon "Mack" McCain of the 5th Judicial Circuit Court in Russellville. The school argued it should not have been forced to forfeit five 4-3A Conference victories because of an ineligible player, and the judge agreed with Lamar.
McCain's ruling came shortly after 7 p.m., and the AAA announced the Class 3A playoffs would be suspended indefinitely.Ten games were scheduled to be played tonight, with six teams in the 26-team bracket receiving byes.
AAA Executive Director Lance Taylor ordered Lamar (8-1, 5-1 4-3A) to forfeit five victories Nov. 7. The ruling dropped Lamar's record to 3-6, 0-6 and knocked the Warriors out of the playoffs, even after a victory in the final regular-season game improved Lamar's record 4-6, 1-6.
Lamar appealed to the subcommittee of the AAA's board of directors, but it denied the appeal Tuesday. The school elected to go to court because the AAA appeal process would not have finished before the playoffs.
"We felt it was the only choice we had," Lamar Superintendent Roy Hester said. "The ball is in the AAA's court now."
Taylor said he was stunned by the decision and that the organization would decide its next step after AAA lawyers had a chance to read McCain's written ruling. Taylor said he had no estimate of how longthe playoffs would be suspended, and this doesn't necessarily mean Lamar will be in the playoffs.
"The judge just said he was going to rule for the kid even though it's against the rules of the AAA as voted on by the schools," Taylor said. "I can't believe it. The ruling from this court is so disappointing."
If the ruling stands, Lamar would regain its position as the conference's No. 2 seed. It would also force the rescheduling of the playoffs because Lamar's entry would cause a domino effect by dropping Paris, Yellville-Summit and Green Forest one seed and knocking Atkins out of the playoffs.
"We felt we were doing the right thing all along," Lamar Coach Jay Holland said. "It's a vindication. Our biggest deal is we were fighting for our kids."
The player, a 6-1, 180-pound junior defensive end, transferred from Russellville, where Taylor said he started as a sophomore, to Lamar this school year and moved in with his grandparents. The player's parents signed custodianship to his grandparents through what Taylor called a caregiver authority affidavit, but Taylor ruled that didn't qualify as a "complete and bona fide move" that is required for junior-year transfers to be eligible to play.
"Our argument was this was a bona fide move," Hester said. "The AAA handbook did not define a bona fide move. The dictionary says bona fide means one made in good faith."
Taylor said there is a page devoted to criteria for changing domiciles on the AAA Web site. He said the player's move fulfilled none of the 13 listed criteria for a legitimate move.
Hester said the player transferred because his parents felt threats made against him last year at Russellville made it unsafe for him at that school. Hester said the school argued that qualified the move as a hardship case in accordance with the AAA handbook's allowance under "extreme and unusual circumstance."
Taylor said he never heard of the threats and said Russellville administrators told Taylor they had no knowledge of any threats. Taylor said the school didn't bring up the threats until the appeal to the subcommittee Tuesday.
Taylor said the school and player's parents presented no documentation about any threats at either the appeal hearing or the court hearing, nor did they apply for a hardship waiver through the AAA.
