Investigation Clears H.S. Football Coaches Of Bullying Claim
PARKER COUNTY (CBS 11 NEWS) - A school district investigation into Aledo High School's football coaches has cleared them of wrongdoing, after a complaint of bullying following Friday night's game against Fort Worth's Western Hills.
Aledo won the game 91 to 0.
The complaint, filed by the parent of a Western Hills' player, accused the coaches of "unsportsmanlike conduct" for not easing up after it was clear they would win.
Aledo ISD administrators say they were required by state law to investigate the complaint. "Administration has reviewed the elements of the complaint and determined bullying did not occur during this contest. Coach Tim Buchanan and his staff acted in an honorable manner of which I am proud," wrote Superintendent Derek Citty, in an e-mail.
The superintendent found that before and during the game coaches for both teams discussed a number of ways to keep the score down.
In an interview Monday, Aledo's head coach, Buchanan, said he pulled his starting players and instituted a continuously running clock. One thing he said he would not do, though, was ask his players to stop trying. "Asking our kids not to play hard, not to play their best – that's not fair to your kids, that's not fair to either team really," he said.
In Aledo, the investigation's result was welcome news.
"I think it's silly… truthfully," said Micheale Toudouze, a former NFL player and Aledo resident.
Toudouze has experienced high pressure games and has a Super Bowl ring, from his years with the Colts, to prove it. He also remember what it was like being on the losing team. "I cried a couple times in high school, just because… it sucks."
Dealing with disappointment, though, provided a valuable lesson he thinks every child should learn. "It's just like in real life," he said. "You lose a job or whatever, you can't pout about it. You pick yourself up and go," he said.
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