To the public eye, reports are suggesting that apparently Long Beach Poly acknowledged that they have violated CIF Bylaw 202, leading them to withdraw from postseason play entirely.
On October 31, Long Beach Poly’s Football team withdrew from the CIF-SS playoffs following their final game of their regular Moore League season. After a night of celebration for the departing seniors, they were struck with the random news, only two days before the CIF-SS playoff brackets were set to drop, that they had been removed due to an administrative decision.
Six of our players had been found ineligible to play due to the falsifying of addresses on paperwork this season, but Poly is not the only one that has been found guilty to this newly focused on issue by CIF and the District. Bishop Montgomery, too, had been found with 19 ineligible players, Millikan consisting of at least 8, a player at Compton, and many more across the Southern Californian teams had been found ineligible.
After being found using ineligible players, the Millikan Rams had forfeited two games earlier in the season, and Poly did the same, forfeiting their win against Tustin after using an ineligible player. Because of Poly’s withdrawal after being in second place, Lakewood will likely move up to second place, following Wilson and now, originally fourth place, Millikan will be made the third playoff bid.
So why, after coming so far in the season, did Poly get robbed of their chances of winning in the CIF Southern Section playoffs, when so many other teams had been found guilty of the same issue as well?
Junior athlete Jayden Coley (receiver) said that principal Alejandro Vega simply decided to take them out.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” said Coley, “they didn’t really tell us nothing, they just… and it was one day before the playoffs came out, so he didn’t give us no time to protest or really do nothing, we just had to take it.”
“Dr. Vega is being weird, he took us out of the playoffs because ‘he wants the future of Poly to be ‘better’ which. . . I call B.S.,” said senior Chase Domio (right guard), “He didn’t give us any explanation– he’s not telling us the full thing.”
Anonymous players mentioned that it could be possible that if they were to go through and play in this year’s playoffs, they may be facing the consequence of not playing in the playoffs completely for the next two to four years, but this was not confirmed by any officials.
Taj Parker (running back), freshman, said, “They really wasn’t telling us nothing, they were sugarcoating it, and I feel like they should just let us play the game that we love.”
However, Michael Pati (d-line) said, “We got pulled out so Millikan can have a shot, but they’re lying on us so Millikan can have a spot.”
The emotional toll that this sudden removal has taken on the team is clear. Many have confessed their disappointment and disapproval with the decision. They feel it is an unfair settlement to make because of the time and hard work they have devoted to the program, and for them to just disregard all of their progress throughout the season is completely unfair. Domio said he’s hurt and sad because Vega took away his senior year and playing in the playoffs, that he feels like they definitely would’ve won if they had gone through.
Other anonymous players came through expressing their anger towards Dr. Vega.
Savion Day (offensive tackle/defensive tackle), a transfer player from St. John Bosco High School, said, “I was depressed a little bit. As a senior, having your year come to an end is crazy. It was unfair to the players, we weren’t able to finish our season and finish things right.”
“They was hot,” said Coley when talking about the seniors, “they was mad, they was sad and crying.”
Deuce Jefferson, senior, said he was shocked because they had just come back from a celebratory night the night before, where they celebrated the seniors at their game against Compton. He said he feels it’s unfair because even though he is blessed with a scholarship to go play on in college, there are players who don’t, and he feels very sad for them.
“It’s a blessing for my end, but I do have hope for those guys, and I know those guys will succeed in the next level,” said Jefferson.
Pati, who was out on injury due to a broken collarbone, was especially upset because he was supposed to be back for the playoffs, but with being withdrawn, his season came to an unpredicted end.
“It’s probably my last time playing football,” he said, “I don’t know if I’m playing in college anymore, so. . . That’s it.”
Overall, most players are hurt because they’ve “been preparing for this moment,” and they didn’t get a chance to fully prove that they would’ve won if they had gone through. Many fully believe that the hard work that they’ve put in since the beginning of the summer throughout the entirety of the season should’ve been accounted for when the administrative decision was taken to strip them from their playoff season completely.
