RE: I wish people would copy and paste the article. (nm)

Posted on: October 16, 2019 at 09:24:57 CT

The Cardinal Ritter football team appears to have used an ineligible player Aug. 31 in
its season opener at Nazareth Academy in suburban Chicago.
The No. 1 small school in the STLhighschoolsports.com rankings and top-ranked team
in the Missouri Media Class 2 poll, Cardinal Ritter (7-0) could be forced to forfeit all
seven of its games this season, per the Missouri State High School Activities
Association by-laws, and could potentially be ruled ineligible for the postseason. The
Lions are the top-ranked small school in the nation according to MaxPreps.
Junior running back Bill Jackson was suspended for Week 1 this season because he was
ejected in the fourth quarter of the 2018 Class 3 state championship game. Per National
Federation of State High School Associations guidelines, he was ruled ineligible for
Cardinal Ritter's next game — Week 1 of the 2019 season Aug. 31 against Nazareth.
Against Nazareth, a player who appears to be Jackson wore No. 24 but was identified on
the roster as freshman Marvin Burks. When Jackson was eligible to return the following
week against Lutheran North, he was properly identified and wore his traditional No. 4.
Photographs from both games show Jackson played against Nazareth. He has unique,
identifying tattoos running down his right bicep and forearm which are visible in photos
from both games.
Mike Mantucca
10/16/2019 Top-ranked small school Cardinal Ritter may have used ineligible player | High School Football | stltoday.com
https://www.stltoday.com/sports/high-school/football/top-ranked-small-school-cardinal-ritter-may-have-used-ineligible/article_995ba3b6-ef7b-11e9-a8c… 3/9
When reached for comment, Cardinal
Ritter athletics director Preston Thomas
said, “We have initiated an investigation
and are working with the state to take
the appropriate next steps.”
Video posted on Cardinal Ritter coach
Brandon Gregory's Instagram account
shows No. 24 leading the Lions through
their pregame huddle call and response
routine prior to the Nazareth game. A
similar video posted to Gregory's
account shows No. 4 in the same role
doing the same routine Sept. 7 prior to a
27-13 victory against Lutheran North at
East St. Louis.
Attempts to reach Gregory were
unsuccessful.
While wearing No. 24, Jackson rushed
for 109 yards and had a 56-yard
touchdown run in a 32-21 win against
Nazareth, the preseason No. 1 team in Chicago and the defending Illinois Class 7A
champion.
After rushing for 147 yards against Lutheran North, Jackson and Gregory told
STLhighschoolsports.com that Jackson sat out Week 1.
“Watching last week, it wasn't fun at all,” Jackson said. “It gave me a spark.”
Photographs show Cardinal Ritter running back Bill Jackson
played in a game in which he was supposed to be ineligible.
Jackson wore No. 24 in a season-opening game at Nazareth
Academy before switching to his usual No. 4 in Week 2 against
Lutheran North.
10/16/2019 Top-ranked small school Cardinal Ritter may have used ineligible player | High School Football | stltoday.com
https://www.stltoday.com/sports/high-school/football/top-ranked-small-school-cardinal-ritter-may-have-used-ineligible/article_995ba3b6-ef7b-11e9-a8c… 4/9
Gregory said, “He earned it, he deserved it. It was his time to play ball.”
According to MSHSAA by-law 5.5.4, “games in which an ineligible player plays shall
be forfeited.”
Because Jackson never served his suspension, he still could be considered ineligible,
and every game he participated in would be subject to forfeit.
If Cardinal Ritter is judged by MSHSAA to have violated its by-laws, the board of
directors has a wide latitude of punishments it can implement. Among those are fines,
prohibition from hosting district tournaments and exclusion from the postseason for one
or more years.
Cardinal Ritter is scheduled to host Granite City at 7 p.m. Friday.