Kathleen High parents focus on petitions, not playoffs

14 days ago

LAKELAND, Florida - With playoffs out of sight, the undefeated* Kathleen High School football team is now focusing on pride. The players' parents, meanwhile, focus on petitions.

*Kathleen must forfeit its first six games because an ineligible player participated.

The Red Devils sprinted out to a 6-0 start this year, but after rival Bartow High reported them for using an ineligible player, they went from first place to last place. The school said the player in question was within district guidelines for graduation eligibility.

However, Masha Paul, president of the Kathleen High Touchdown Club, said those standards are below the Florida High School Athletic Association's (FHSAA) standards for activity participation.

"If it's different for regular students and it's a different criteria for student-athletes... that's wrong," he said.

Paul was among the parents who went to court on Wednesday to get an injuction to preserve the team's six wins. However, it was denied based on FHSAA precident. He's now focusing his efforts on a petition demanding district and elected officials address why the mistake was allowed to happen.

At Friday night's home finale against Lake Gibson, parents and students gathered signatures on their petition. While Paul's willing to take the issue to federal court if necessary, he's hoping it doesn't come to that. He's looking for a dialogue between upset parents and officials.

In the meantime, he says the student-athletes - who have yet to lose any of their nine games on the field - are learning important lessons.

"Adversity's not new to Kathleen," Paul said. "It's going to make them stronger in life. So, no matter what happens, we're going to smile, and we're going to have fun."

Follow 10 Connects reporter Noah Pransky on Twitter at www.twitter.com/noahpransky or Facebook at www.facebook.com/noahpransky.

Noah Pransky, 10 Connects

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