Owyhee football coach suspended for the rest of the season. Here’s what we know
Idaho’s high school sports governing body suspended Owyhee football coach Jason Burton for the rest of the season Wednesday, fined the school $1,500 and placed the Storm on probation for one year for using an ineligible player earlier this season, a West Ada School District spokesperson confirmed.
The punishment came 24 hours before Owyhee (5-3) battled Timberline (5-3) in the 6A SIC cross-division round. The winner of Thursday night’s game advances to the state playoffs, while the loser must hope it can earn an at-large berth via the MaxPreps rankings.
Burton’s suspension includes any Owyhee playoff games, and the Storm’s assistant coaches will lead the team Thursday, West Ada spokesperson Niki Scheppers told the Idaho Statesman. The district has not made a decision on a long-term interim coach if the Storm make the postseason.
The state punishment stems from Owyhee adding a player to its roster before a 30-28 victory over Boise on Oct. 11. Boise alleged that the player hadn’t completed enough practices to be eligible for that game, and it filed a complaint with the District Three Board of Control on Monday, Owyhee Athletic Director Dane Roy previously told the Statesman.
The local arm of the Idaho High School Activities Association originally ordered Owyhee to forfeit the victory Tuesday morning. That would have shuffled the league standings, changed four of the six cross-division matchups this week and eliminated Owyhee from playoff contention.
But the full IHSAA board overturned the forfeit decision Tuesday night before issuing the other punishments on Wednesday. The IHSAA board’s move restored the 6A SIC standings, with Boise finishing last in the River Division, eliminating it from the playoffs and lifting Owyhee back into contention.
IHSAA rules do not automatically require a forfeit if a team violates one of the state’s rules, leaving the governing body the discretion to fit punishments to the circumstances.
The back-and-forth boiled down to a debate over what counts as a practice. State rules require football players to complete 10 football-specific practices before playing in a game. But the rules don’t clearly define what counts as a practice, IHSAA Executive Director Chad Williams told the Statesman in a phone interview Thursday.
“The 10-practice rule, in my opinion, is very objective,” Williams said. “The reason we have the 10-practice rule is for student safety. But the rule that defines practices is open to different interpretations.”
Williams said he couldn’t speak for all 15 IHSAA board members, but he said many felt uneasy forcing a team to forfeit a game for violating an ambiguous rule.
“The board felt like the consequences should be more directed to the adults than the kids,” Williams said, adding that the IHSAA would re-evaluate the rule to remove any confusion moving forward.
Owyhee had lost three straight games before adding the player at issue to its roster. The Storm then won back-to-back games in the 6A SIC River Division to move back into contention for a playoff berth.
Burton declined to comment when reached Thursday.
This story was originally published October 24, 2024 at 5:50 PM with the headline "Owyhee football coach suspended for the rest of the season. Here’s what we know."
