Miami, FL – The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) has dealt a serious blow to the Miami Central Rockets’ football season, announcing on Monday that the team must forfeit nine games due to the use of an ineligible player. This decision follows a similar ruling made just days earlier against The First Academy in Orlando.
According to findings released by the FHSAA, Miami Central self-reported the violation, which involved a player who entered the 9th grade in the 2020-2021 school year and returned as a fifth-year student for the current academic year. The FHSAA determined that this player participated in nine games this season, which is a violation of bylaw 9.5.1. As a result, the Rockets’ record now stands at 0-9 with the postseason playoffs just around the corner.
The forfeits included Miami Central’s earlier victory in the GMAC championship against Miami Norland, where they won 22-14 on October 18th. In addition to the forfeits, the school has been fined $900. The Rockets were previously ranked sixth in the latest High School rankings for Florida.
The games in question where the ineligible player participated included matchups against teams like Miami Edison, Pompano Beach, and Miami Northwestern among others. This incident adds to a string of recent sanctions levied by the FHSAA against various teams for using ineligible players during the current season.
Other schools such as Miami Norland and Western have also faced similar punishments as part of the FHSAA’s ongoing effort to uphold fair play in high school sports. As for the future, Miami Central will have to regroup quickly as they head into an unprecedented postseason without a single win.
Stay tuned for more updates on high school sports as the football season progresses.
