John Adams Spartans season sacked

One of the best football teams in the Public School Athletic League (PSAL) had their season sacked and were forced to miss the playoffs.
The John Adams High School Spartans have one of the best records in the league at 8-2, but you wouldn’t know that by checking the PSAL web site. According to the league, they are a mediocre 5-5 and not quite playoff worthy.
The team was forced to forfeit three of their victories after the PSAL penalized the team for violating student transfer rules by suiting up an ineligible player. Parents and coaches are calling the oversight a “clerical error” – and they don’t think the kids should be punished for a mistake made by the school’s athletic department.
“Is this the kind of message we want to send to our children?” asked Patricia Howard, whose son Joseph plays on the Spartans. “They worked extremely hard and they deserve a spot in the playoffs. Why punish the kids for an office error?”
Howard said that the school’s athletic director, Thomas Glass, is responsible for spotting any ineligible players before they take the field. The student in question, junior Antoine Arnold, played football at Bayside High School before he transferred to Adams last November, making him ineligible to play the first half of the season.
John Adams High School officials declined to comment beyond saying that what happened was “unfortunate.”
However, team captain Devven Baker said that “unfortunate” doesn’t even begin to explain how the Spartans, and the rest of the student body, feels.
“Honestly, to us it feels like total disrespect. They don’t respect how hard we worked or how important this really is for us,” said Baker, an offensive lineman. “Just let us play. Don’t punish us for what happened behind the scenes. What they did is unfair.”
Youth football coach Paul Casale, who was on hand for the rally, said that this kind of situation can have a negative impact on how kids view adults who “run the system.”
“It totally demoralizes them. It shows them that no matter how hard they work, someone is going to stop them from getting what they deserve,” said Casale. “It has a psychological affect – this is where they learn to lose faith in the system.”
While the rally was held as a way to spotlight the plight of the Spartan team, many of the kids used the opportunity to celebrate their winning season – something they are not able to do on the field of play. Players barked Spartan battle cries and lifting each other on their shoulders, while their cheerleaders chanted choreographed numbers, making this gathering an impromptu victory party.
Team captain Baker said they were celebrating for the seniors on the team who missed out on one last shot at championship glory.
“I feel bad for the seniors more than anyone else,” said Baker. “We spilled our blood, sweat and tears on the field as a family.”