Bishop Diego was not commenting on Monday on whether it would appeal the sanction imposed against its football team by the CIF-Southern Section.
The CIF-SS on Friday informed Bishop Diego it would not be allowed to play a home game during the CIF playoffs because of an alleged violation of the undue influence rule.
Bishop Diego posted a 10-0 regular season record and won the Tri-Valley League championship, thus earning a first-round home game for the CIF Northwest Division playoffs. But the sanction means the Cardinals will travel to South Torrance (an at-large team) on Friday night for a first-round game. Subsequent games also would be played on the road, even if the Cardinals won a coin-flip.
Find a current Northwest Division CIF bracket HERE
The CIF-SS, after the results of an investigation by school officials, determined Bishop Diego violated the undue influence rule when a flier publicizing an admissions event at the school for 8th graders in October was made available to a Santa Barbara Youth Football League team by a YFL parent.
Thom Simmons, director of communications for CIF Southern Section, said the sanction is typical for the violation.
?This sanction does not keep the athletes ? who violated no bylaws ? from being able to participate in postseason competition while still punishing the school for those bylaw infractions,? he said in an email to the online site Noozhawk.
The flier was published as an advertisement in the Santa Barbara News-Press and online. It invited 8th graders to the school for Spirit Day activities and promoted the Homecoming football game.
Paul Harrington, the Head of School at Bishop Diego, said in a letter on the school web site, that the YFL parent does not have a student at Bishop Diego and has no affiliation or connection to the school.
But, “CIF officials deem that a line was crossed, resulting in the sanction…,” Harrington wrote.
He added in the letter: “The C.I.F. findings in this matter do not find any misconduct by any of our staff or coaches in violation of C.I.F. rules. I stand behind our coaching staff and can assure you that we, as a Catholic school rooted in sound ethics and moral values, always play by the rules.”
Harrington told Presidio Sports in an email, “It was not clear by CIF as to who reported the alleged violation.”
He said the school was notified of the alleged violation via phone call from the CIF Commission of Athletics in the third week of October.
“As a result of the call, we were asked to conduct an investigation which we completed over the following week,” he said.
Simmons said his office was given evidence that a rule was violated, and it contacted Bishop Diego to investigate the matter.
?They did so, and their response confirmed a violation had occurred,? Simmons said. ?At that point, a penalty was applied.?
The school was informed of the sanction on Friday morning.
The CIF playoff pairings were determined on Saturday and released to the media on Sunday.
