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DANIEL CLIFTON • EDITOR

MARBLE FALLS — Two high school football players striking a game official from behind during the waning moments of the Marble Falls-San Antonio John Jay game Sept. 4 has drawn a police investigation as well as raised many questions regarding the act and what to do about it.

When former Faith Academy of Marble Falls football coach Russ Roberts watched the clip of the two John Jay players hitting the referee, he first asked himself a couple of questions.

“When I first saw this, I asked ‘Was this an accident?’” Roberts said. “But when you look at, clearly it wasn’t an accident. Then I wanted to know if there was anyway (a coach) could defend it — what the players did. And there isn’t. I don’t see any way.”

On Sept. 7, the Marble Falls Police Department released a statement that they are investigating the hit.

“During the game, two players from John Jay High School targeted one of the game officials and blindsided him, knocking him to the ground,” the statement read. “The incident was recorded on video from several different angles, and the Marble Falls Police Department is conducting an investigation.”

No arrests have been made as of Sept. 7.

Roberts, who coached in Texas public and private schools for several decades, was admittedly shocked by the two John Jay players hitting the referee. The first player comes from the left and behind the referee with clearly no play in the area and puts his shoulder into the official, knocking him to the ground.

The second John Jay player, coming from the right side and behind the official, appears to put his helmet down and strike the man while he’s still on the ground.

The two hits came with about a minute left in the Marble Falls-San Antonio John Jay game Sept. 4 at Mustang Stadium. The Mustangs were running the clock out to secure a 15-9 win when the two hits happened.

Both John Jay players were ejected from the game.

Officials at Northside Independent School District, to which John Jay High School belongs, confirmed the two players were suspended from the team. The district also released a statement Sept. 6 regarding the incident and the next steps.

“This is disturbing,” the statement read. “It is not the sportsmanlike behavior that we teach our students. We are cooperating fully with the University Interscholastic League with this investigation.”

The district will conduct interviews with game officials, coaching staffs and student-athletes, the statement added.

Since the incident, Marble Falls head football coach Matt Green confirmed that San Antonio John Jay head football coach Gary Guiterrez had apologized to him for the incident.

Roberts said he believes the NISD officials are saying the right thing and appear to be taking the correct steps to address the situation.

Still, he admitted this is the first time in his career he’s ever seen players go after a game official like this.

“There’s been a couple of times over the years where a different player has collided with an official, but it was always an accident,” he said. “This, I just don’t know how anybody could think it was an accident. I’m sure some people will try to claim that, but when you look at the video, I don’t see how you could really claim such a thing.”

One of the problems Roberts noted was the lack of respect for authority by many today.

“It’s an overall lack of respect for authority, and we see that in how we treat our law enforcement,” he said. “I know some people will say this is totally different, it was a sports official. But football official is exactly that on the field, the authority. Once that game starts and until the final whistle blows, they are the authority, and you have to respect that.”

The hit has garnered national attention in both sports and regular media. It hasn’t exactly given the rest of the country a good image of Texas high school football.

“I find it embarrassing for the entire state of Texas and our sports program,” Roberts added. “It hasn’t been good for high school football, it hasn’t been good for Marble Falls getting caught up in this, it’s just not a good thing.”

But the coach pointed out it’s only one incident in the many more good things that come out of Texas high school sports.

“I know some people may use this to point out problems, but overall sports, especially in Texas, gives kids so many opportunities to develop strong, positive skills and characteristics,” Roberts said. “Sure, you can get those from other activities, but I don’t know of anything else which develops so many good things and so quickly in kids than sports.”

Lost amidst the outrage and comments on social media is the fact the Mustangs turned in a great performance and earned a hard-fought victory. Mustangs fan and parent Kyle Stripling understood the attention the Jay players’ action was receiving, but didn’t want the Marble Falls community to forget about the message their kids shared Sept. 4.

“It would be a shame if the actions of the other team took the spotlight from a very positive night for the Mustangs and our fans,” he said. “The positive message from our head coach (Matt Green) and our new superintendent (Chris Allen) should be our focus.”

Roberts, who coaches Faith middle school football and serves as the First Baptist Christian School athletic director, is in a new phase of coaching up the next generation of football players, particularly his grandchildren.

“I have grandchildren who are playing now, and I’m seeing football through the eyes of my grandchildren, and sometimes I see things that I wish we did different today,” he said.

And everybody would probably agree they don’t want to see a repeat of the hit on an official like the one during the Marble Falls-San Antonio John Jay game ever again.

daniel@thepicayune.com

PREVIOUS REPORTING

MARBLE FALLS — School and University Interscholastic League officials are reportedly investigating an incident during the Marble Falls-San Antonio John Jay football game at Mustang Stadium where one, possibly two, Jay players targeted a referee late in the game.

With about one minute left in the game Sept. 4 and Marble Falls running out the clock on a 15-9 win, two Jay defensive players look as if they intentionally targeted the official standing in the secondary. As the Mustangs snap the ball on the Jay 21-yard line, the Jay player who is standing behind and to the left of the referee races toward the man, who is standing on the Jay 12-yard line.

In the video, the player slams into the back of the official, who then falls to the ground. When the first Jay player hits the official, the nearest Mustang is about five yards away with the play, a run, developing at least nine yards away and nowhere near the official.

A second angle of the video shows the first Jay player turning and putting his shoulder into the referee and appearing to make no attempt to avoid the man. Then, a second Jay player coming from behind and to the right of the referee appears to follow the first hit by putting his head down and striking the official, who is now on the ground.

Both players were ejected from the game.

Northside Independent School District officials stated Sept. 5 that they are looking into the incident and the UIL is aware of it as well. San Antonio Jay is part of NISD. The video of the hit, from at least two different angles, has circulated on the Internet drawing the ire of many who have seen it.

Two other Jay players were previously ejected from the game for separate incidents.

editor@thepicayune.com

36 thoughts on “Marble Falls police investigating hits on referee by John Jay football players

  1. Excellent game by the other players not involved in this.

    As for the two players who assaulted the ref, hope they get charged, and hope the coach that encouraged the assault gets the same or higher level charge for provoking the attack.

  2. My son did a great job in this game and played his heart out defensively…no mention of his name. He kept a Jay opponent from scoring several times and even took possession of a lost ball as the Jon Jay attempted to score. JRod #5

    1. Ya there you go, mustang mom!! Being self centered and pushing to have your child in the paper!! I would be completely embarrassed if you were my mother. The reporter clearly is writing about the ref incident, and not how your “your” son played. I can’t believe we have become a community that gives trophy a out to all participants. Let’s focus more on the article, and less on your sons statistics!!

  3. Sounds to me that they CONSPIRED to comit this crime. If the coach called for it he is also a conspirator.Conspiracy is worse than the the assault

  4. Interesting sarah, I went on some of the twitter accounts, and visited https://twitter.com/moses569?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
    I counted the word ***** twice in the comments before I left. So, It seems like the word is a term of endearment for your players. So, they are so offended by the word yet use it on their twitter account? Which is it, offensive word or term of camaraderie? I highly doubt the official used that word as well. Just playing the victim card as usual. If you are so offended by words then you should at least try not using them. just sayin!!

  5. “I find it embarrassing for the entire state of Texas and our sports program,” Roberts added. “It hasn’t been good for high school football, it hasn’t been good for Marble Falls getting caught up in this, it’s just not a good thing.”

    Really Russ Roberts! There is nothing embarrassing for the Marble Falls sports program in regard to this incident. We did not choose to “get caught up in this”. Our players and coaching staff are to be admired for the way they conducted themselves. The Marble Falls Mustangs overall had a great game and took home the win!

  6. By stating the referee made those comments, they have made their own actions a hate crime. I hope that there actions get hate crime charges levied against them.

  7. I was at the game and saw it first hand. Premeditated assault for both players and the coaching staff should be investigated with all means necessary. One of our players said they heard the coach call for “the hit” from the sideline before the play. That may be all hearsay, but what is not hearsay is the video of both players taking aim and delivering the hit on the ref as the play was far, far from where the play was happening. We basically ran a dive left and our running back was tackled on about a 1 yard gain, I strongly believe these players and coaches figured the hit would be covered up by other players in the way as the play occured, but that didn’t happen and now they are in bad, bad trouble. My 8 year old son knows it was wrong…I’m pretty sure these players did also. I am very proud of the way the Marble Falls Mustangs handled themselves on the field without retaliation! Very classy and great sportsmanship. This even after Jon Jay stormed through the line on a QB kneeldown and tackled him on the next play. Jon Jay had players ejected earlier in the game also. Way to go Mustangs ! Our prayers are with all involved….

  8. They didn’t think because they are impulsive teenagers with out the ability to fully appreciate the consequences of their actions….jesus…if they were hard core criminals don’t you think they would have gotten back at him away from the cameras and about 1,000 people in the stands?? Knowing right from wrong and having the mental capacity to appreciate long term consequences are two different things. Most of you commenters seem to not have the mental capacity for critical thinking and you think kids should?

    1. That is about the most ridiculous excuse I have ever heard. These kids know right from wrong. They knew what they were planning was wrong and they did it anyway. It’s not like they did it impulsively or lashed out in the heat of the moment. They discussed it, they planned it, and they followed through. That is criminal premeditation. Period. They had plenty of time to think it through before the play started. They did it anyway and they should be criminally charged with assault.

  9. Yes it was bad and yes they should be punished and I think they have already been removed from the team and expelled (not sure) but for gods sake they are stupid, impulsive, teen age boys who did something really stupid. All you parents making saying how your kids are raised right and would never do anything bad well congratulations for being perfect with perfect children!! Stop passing being judgmental a*******! and stop saying that all kids are hateful and lack respect and blah, blah, blah….that is simply not true. Some kids are just like some cops are abusive—does not mean they all are. Let the officials do their jobs and mind your own business and be grateful if your child has never done anything rotten.

    1. We’re not talking about impulse control here. This was a premeditated attack on an authority figure by a couple of thugs intending to teach him a lesson. There are consequences to actions. When those actions are premeditated assault, then the consequences should be pretty severe.

  10. What could they have been thinking? No matter what the offense, how can the right response be to hit the guy in the middle of the field … in front of an opposing crowd … on camera? What did they think would happen?

  11. Fire the coaching staff and kick the two boys off the team. I find it hard to believe they did it on their own. Even if they dod, the coach should be held responsible for what his players do.

  12. Oh Sarah, you poor misguided soul. IF the ref actually said something derogatory to those players then they should have had the intelligence to report him to their coach.

    Instead of acting like street thugs, which by the way, if you talk to students at schools who are in the same district at Jay they will tell you that Jay has a large percentage of thugs attending.

  13. Sarah, please let the adults handle it from here. This type of vigilantly justice has no place in society or during a high school athletic event. For you to insinuate it’s perfectly appropriate to act in this manner, leads me to question to your ability to make a sound conclusion when provided with the visual evidence surrounding this sort of juvenile display for being called a “derogatory word”. If this individual targeted for violence was your father and you were of age to vote rather than a classmate of the two thugs that carried out this act of violence you might understand how this gentleman’s health was jeopardized, only then could you provide an educated response versus your post of they were (again) called a “derogatory word” These two misguided individuals should never be granted the privilege to participate in another high school athletic event for their remaining eligibility. I would cfhallenge the coaching staff to make that decision on their own without guidance from their supervisors and remove them from the athletic arena as a whole for behavior detrimental to their school & program(not just the team)Their families should seek psychiatric guidance to educate these two thugs before they reach adulthood and continue to behave without proper guidance. I have my own sense of punishment for this type of thuggery but I’ll leave that to the authorities.

  14. Sarah… I see that you were on the field and heard the conversation between the Ref and the players, how insightful. I do not believe for one second the Ref said anything to these players. The players involved, numbers 81 and 12 need to be arrested for “Assault with a Deadly ( helmet) Weapon”…The ref needs to file a civil suit naming the players, the parents, the jay coaching staff, school and school district liable … the UIL needs to send a message…NOW

  15. Well, the little thugs think “that” justifies their actions? They need to be jailed.

  16. So why not identify the players? Their numbers are clearly visible in the video.

    1. Their names appeared in the Austin American Statesman this morning.

  17. Allowing the actions of these two young men to go unpunished would be an injustice to all of us. It doesn’t matter what the referee did, there are ways to deal with that. If we allow this to happen at a high school football game, how can we expect any of our children anywhere to ever follow rules or learn the proper way to deal with life. It is clear these two should not play football anymore because they are unable to deal with being called names. I hope we can all learn from this. Our children need to learn self respect before they will respect anyone else. It may be these two are very good kids that just got caught up in the heat of the moment and made a bad decision. But it was a very bad decision that could have cost the referee a broken neck, or his life.

  18. Hahaha already playing the race card. Can’t teach that in a school.

    1. Hermin, I must’ve missed something. Who played the race card? Were comments removed? I have yet to see anything racial here.

      If you’re referring to the use of the term “thug”, that word has nothing to do with race. Only recently have the media and the race baiters tried to make that a racially derogatory term. I have no idea what the races of these players are, but in my book they are thugs and idiots.

      The entire team should forfeit all games and be removed from the league for this season. As well, the entire coaching staff should also be removed. This type of behavior comes from the top down.

  19. This appears to be assault and battery, in the legal sense, hardly acceptable in any context. I hope the law will be enforced in the courts. This is beyond a matter for the school and the athletic league.

  20. No “reason” on the football field deserves a response like that. It shows poor sportsmanship and lack of respect for authority. I’m still wondering why the two players aren’t in jail for felony assault. The Ref should sue the parents of such idiots and the two players should spend the rest of their youth in prison. Put them with the rest of the losers they closely mimic.

  21. May they carry the stigma of being idiots their entire life – I am sure they come from nice families

  22. The reason for the attack is because the referee called one of our players a (derogatory word).

    I know the attack was uncalled for, but don’t bother reporting about this incident if you dont know the full details. This could have been easily found out if you had checked any Student from John Jay’s Twitter.

    1. Wow Sarah, thanks for these facts! Now we know we should check high school Twitter accounts before reading news stories. Hope these players feel the temper tantrum was worth it. I doubt they’ll ever play organized football again.

      This man easily could have been put in the hospital. Nearly, seriously, grow up.

    2. The players said the official used that word, on Twitter no less. Why did no one say anything during the game to another official, a coach, a trainer?

      What you and other John Jay fans/parents/community should be looking for is the suspension from school and arrest of those two players.

    3. So yall teach your kids to use violence to deal with people who say bad things to them? That’s life. They deserve to be in jail. What cowards for not facing him man to man. Thugs!!!

    4. Bless your hear, child. Bless your dear heart. That’s not the way news works. What they players did is a matter of record thanks to several videos. What the referee allegedly said is not supported by anything but the words of a couple of angsty youths who are about to go up on criminal charges for assault. I would hope that you’re just a bad troll suggesting that people search high school students’ Twitter accounts for reliable news, but sadly I think you’re just an ignorant child. And suppose he did use the n-word. Is this what you’ve learned growing up? Somebody uses a harsh word, respond with potentially life-altering violence?

    5. This was a premeditated attack ordered by the assistant coach Mack Breed who told his players, “That guy needs to pay for cheating us”. One of the players who hit the referee was also penalized on a previous play for a late hit on the other teams quarterback who was on one knee, I supposed he said a racial slur as well? The race card is not going to work in this case.

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