Thursday's football game between Dallas ISD's South Oak Cliff High School and W.W. Samuell High School was canceled after the district says they identified ineligible players on the Samuell varsity team.
The district's notice of the cancellation on Thursday did not initially give a reason for the schedule change. They did confirm, however, the game would not be rescheduled and that anyone who purchased tickets in advance would receive a refund.
On Friday afternoon, the district confirmed in a statement that the ineligible players were discovered during an internal investigation; however, they did not say what led them to open the investigation.
“Dallas ISD is committed to transparency, fairness, and accountability in all our programs, upholding the highest standards for our teams and students. Following an internal investigation, the district discovered ineligible players on the W.W. Samuell High School varsity football team, which resulted in the cancellation of last night’s game against South Oak Cliff," the district said in a statement. "We are ensuring strict compliance with UIL guidelines and will not tolerate actions that compromise the integrity of our athletic programs. Dallas ISD is committed to addressing this matter in full transparency and will take the necessary actions to protect the interests of our students and community.”
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In an email to NBC 5 earlier in the afternoon, a UIL communications manager said, "UIL is aware of a local investigation into alleged rule violations involving the Dallas Samuel football program and has been in contact with Dallas ISD and the local district executive committee (DEC). At this time, UIL has not received a report of findings or action taken by the DEC."
The Samuell Spartans were 7-1 this season before Thursday's forfeit. Their last scheduled game is against Spruce on Nov. 8. The SOC Golden Bears were 6-2 going into the game against Samuell. With an undefeated district record, Dave Campbell's Texas Football ranked SOC No. 1 in Class 5A Division II after the Golden Bears beat Seagoville last week 63-0.
Both teams now have a 7-2 record.
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