Six second half personal fouls escalated tension before Pioneer-Huron brawl
Pioneer and Huron players fight after Friday's game.
Daniel Brenner | AnnArbor.com
The box score of Friday night’s Pioneer-Huron game paints a picture of one that escalated during the second half before ultimately culminating in a post-game fight involving players and coaches that sent one player to the hospital.
School officials are meeting today to determine the next course of action.
The second half of the game featured six personal fouls, including two for unsportsmanlike conduct. That’s compared to one personal foul in the first half, and three penalties that were not personal fouls. For the game, Pioneer was assessed four personal fouls, and Huron was assessed three.
The ultimate moment that instigated the fight was Pioneer’s decision to throw deep passes in the final minute when the game was in hand. Huron coach Cory Gildersleeve blamed Pioneer coach Paul Test for not considering the volume of personal foul penalties when choosing a late-game strategy that could incite anger.
“Any veteran coach at that point and time after there’s been two or three personal foul penalties thrown out on the field would take a knee and end the game,” Gildersleeve said Friday night.
Test said his players were the ones responsible for the late play calls, and later apologized to Gildersleeve.
The final Pioneer drive featured two passes. The final one, the second-to-last play of the game, resulted in a pass interference penalty.
Gildersleeve said it was after that play that he started yelling at Test from across the field.
The two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in Friday’s game came in a span of three plays early in the third quarter. After Pioneer was penalized for roughing the passer on the fourth play of the half, Huron received an offsetting personal foul for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Two plays later, Pioneer received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Both were assessed for shoving after the whistle.
The game also became chippy on Pioneer’s final drive of the game, when the Pioneers were assessed a personal foul on the kickoff, and another six plays later.
While penalty statistics on high school football games are scarce, data available indicates Friday's game featured more fouls than most. Of the four full Pioneer box scores submitted to AnnArbor.com this season, Friday’s game featured the most personal foul penalties.
Pioneer’s game against Skyline featured six personal fouls, three for each team. Overall, Pioneer committed eight personal fouls in the four games, including one against Temperance Bedford and none against Monroe. In each of the four games, Pioneer amassed more penalty yards than its opponent.
The only other area school that submits full box scores, including penalty totals, is Chelsea. The Bulldogs committed five personal fouls in five games. In those five games, nine personal fouls were committed. That’s compared to 14 in four games for Pioneer.
Kyle Austin covers sports for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kyleaustin@annarbor.com or 734-623-2535. Follow him on Twitter @KAustin_AA.
Comments
15crown00
Wed, Oct 17, 2012 : 7:40 a.m.
c u Cory
AMOC
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 6:15 p.m.
This is yet more evidence that the football culture in AAPS is out of control. The number of personal fouls, the running up the score, and the tasteless, graceless taunting of defeated opponents reported by AA.com and it's commentators tells me that Pioneer, at least, should suspend their football program for the rest of this season at a minimum. Huron's Coach Guildersleeve, who apparently shoved the Pioneer head coach but is now denying it, needs to loose not only his coaching position but his teaching license if the allegations are supported by the police and AAPS investigations. We as a community should not be paying $3.5 million of tax money annually to support high school sports programs that teach and re-enforce this kind of behavior. Not to mention the addtional $1-2 million raised by the booster clubs and spent by the coaches, but never publicly reported on.
jcj
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 4:29 a.m.
This was an embarrassing display.It was allowed to escalate by the coaches. It was started by the coaches. And players made bad choices by getting involved. The should be consequences. BUT it was not a terrorist attack so do not panic. Let the process play out.
say it plain
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 1:52 a.m.
Uh Oh, is @a2roots worried that the people with 'no clue' about the giant amazing benefits of high school football (which don't actually exist) will take some of millions in funding away lol?! I'd guess not, because there is a very vocal contingency who would threaten to pull their kids out of the schools. So probably you don't need to worry. And probably there will be no repercussions (except criminal ones possibly, of course!) for the kids and the coaches beyond being scolded and suspended in whatever ways the MHSAA--who *do* presumably 'know about sports'--decides on. Pioneer's coach will likely stay so long as the Pioneer parents are 'happy' with him, and heck he's giving them winners isn't he?! Huron's coach, being a 'loser' record-wise, would be more likely to be let go, don't you think? But those decisions will probably be made at the 'school' level anyway, so, we can all move along soon, nothing (til AA.com gets us the FOIA'ed video clips anyhow!) to see here...
a2roots
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 11 p.m.
Glad to see nobody calling for the end of high school football in these posts as in some of the others. Pure and simple the coaches and officials lost control of the game. The actions of the Pioneer players reflect poorly on Test. He is the coach and must take control when players don't do as directed and he did not. Gildersleeve blew his cool and his personal lack of control reflected poorly on him. Plenty of blame to throw around. Now people without a clue regarding football and team sports will be involved in decision making. Now expect more poor decisions.
EightySeven
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:43 p.m.
Coach Test has a history of running up the score on teams. Just look at the Dexter game. He did the Dexter game on purpose he thought that Tom Barbieri got a raw deal from Dexter when fired. Coach Test needs to man up and stop picking on the weaker opponents. I'm sure that Huron was well aware of his tactics and let him know about his actions.
stevenhs
Sat, Oct 20, 2012 : 6:54 a.m.
Alabama needs to be lectured not to run up the score. Frankly I don't understand this "not running up the score." Some sports (wrestling) have mercy rules that end a loopsided match, but if there is no such rule, I just don't see how losing by an extra touchdown or two is such a big deal. Losing is a lesson of sports. It hurts to lose, by one point or thirty. And most all of us are bound to lose at some points in our lives. In every competition there is at least one loser, in some many. It is a part of life. Better to be a loser, than a quitter.
EightySeven
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:35 p.m.
Own up to your play calling, Coach Test. You or your assistant coaches call the plays. A real class act blaming his players. Classless!
mibadger
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:19 p.m.
Both coaches are suspended for the next game, at least. Not many details yet: http://www2.wxyz.com/dpp/news/2-ann-arbor-football-coaches-suspended-after-team-fight
Susan Montgomery
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:10 p.m.
"The game also became chippy on Pioneer's final drive of the game..." Chippy?
actionjackson
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 6:51 p.m.
Mickey Redmond uses the term "chirping" when players are trash talking and attempting to get a player riled up enough to drop gloves and fight.
Dan
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 2:36 a.m.
Coach Mike Glennie used to use 'chippy' all the time. Pretty good crossover term I'd say
say it plain
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 1:39 a.m.
I like that term, I'm going to use it now wherever I can now lol!
mike gatti
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 12:33 a.m.
No it has usually been a hockey term meaning quick to retaliate or try to get in a cheap shot or at least a borderline one. Chippy play in pro hockey often results in players dropping the gloves. Not good.
Tony Livingston
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:23 p.m.
I thought the same thing. Chippy? Is this a football term?
Dexterdriver
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:05 p.m.
If the reason the Huron coach got so upset and basically instigated the ensuing problems, was because of that old lame "running up the score"excuse, then my long held belief that this is a nutty attitude and shouldn't be held by serious youth coaches, is upheld. Usually when a team gets ahead by a substantial margin, players that usually don't get to play can go in and try to show what they can do. Are they supposed to not try hard? Some folks would say, "yes, don't make the losers feel any worse". To me that is not a noble or "manly" attitude to hold. If you can't handle your team losing, my friend, then don't go on the field as a player or a coach.
mike gatti
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 12:30 a.m.
No you are supposed to teach sportsmanship and do it the classy way. You run the football and and keep the clock running. It is not about showing what you can do. In all likelihood the other team would have their reserves in as well. "Showing what they can do" against the second string is hardly meaningful. That is part of the game and how it worked for many years. You don't show someone up just because you can. Years with no brawls show that was a pretty good unwritten rule. Please uber parents stop demanding meaningless touchdowns for the sake of the kids.
darre james
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 7:41 p.m.
Players were responsible for the late game calls??? How is that? The coaches call the plays not kids.
jcj
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 4:21 a.m.
Gotta agree if the players were running plays the coach did not want then he has no business coaching them.
Engineer
Tue, Oct 16, 2012 : 12:53 a.m.
The kids may have thrown the first pass but after that a seat on the bench would have cured that. Sit on that bench for a game or 2 and it might seem prudent to run the plays the coach calls. I do not ever recall Bo having kids run different plays than he called.
EightySeven
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 10:46 p.m.
I could understand "the kids" throwing the ball, but Test should have called a timeout and put a end to that game. Either he called those plays or has no control of his team what so ever. Once again either this falls directly on him.
mssomebodynice
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 9:07 p.m.
Here! Here! Coach Test hides behind kids! Sad! Wake up Pioneer parents! It isn't just about winning! This is not the first time he has done this either! High School sports are supposed to be a form of physical fitness, emotional management, team sportsmanship and the building of character, not the mass slaughter and public humiliation that has taken place so frequently and including several school districts this year, led by Coach Test. It's easy to win but it needs to be with showing graciousness.
a2citizen
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 8:54 p.m.
Ever heard of an "audible" ?
Billy Bob Schwartz
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 8:07 p.m.
Maybe that's true during the game, but it can change afterward.
umbsme98
Mon, Oct 15, 2012 : 8:06 p.m.
Coaches may call the plays but kids do not have to run them. However if the kids changed the play I would have benched them right then to make sure they knew who was in charge.