The Donoho School in Alabama decided not to play its upcoming high school football game against Wadley. The Falcons chose to bail on their game against one of the best teams in the state in the interest of player safety.
They are already dealing with too many injuries and illness.
As a result of this decision, the high school football game will not be played as scheduled. It is unclear as to whether there are plans to make this game up in the future or if it will disappear as if it never existed.
Donoho is backing down from Wadley.
The Donoho School is a private Blue Ribbon school located in the small town of Anniston, Alabama— approximately 65 miles east of Birmingham. It enrolls approximately 300/350 students from Pre-K through the 12th grade.
Therein lies the issue.
The Falcons football team does not have enough players to compete against Wadley.
Wadley High School, which is just as small, is one of the most dominant high school football programs in Alabama. The Dogs are the reigning state champions on the 1A level.
Donoho lost its first three games of the season by a combined score of 123-25. Wadley started 3-0 by a combined score of 160-37.
These two teams are on very different trajectories. The former chose not to play the latter.
The Falcons canceled their upcoming high school football game.
Donoho head coach Bill Smith made the final decision to cancel the game against Wadley. He cited player safety.
The Falcons have a roster of just 25 players in grades 7-12. They are down to just 18 guys in total.
Four two-way starters are affected by an injury. Two players are in concussion protocol. One has mono.
To have a team of mostly eighth- and ninth-graders play pretty much the entire game against “the most physical team in Class 1A football” was going to be a disaster. Smith decided to call it off.
I think that is probably the right decision. There is no need to put these young kids in danger.
As of right now, I am not sure whether this game will be rescheduled or if it will be considered as a forfeit.
According to Joe Medley of East Alabama Sports Today, the rulebook reads as follows:
“If a team cancels its season, its region opponents will receive forfeits. Its non-region opponents will receive forfeits unless replacement teams are played and these games will count in the tiebreaking factors.”
He assumes the same rules apply to single game cancellations. I have reached out to gain a better understanding of the procedure.