GHSA to investigate Newton football but can’t rule until after playoffs
The GHSA has received a report alleging an ineligible player on Newton’s football team but won’t complete an investigation or make a ruling until after the playoffs, per GHSA bylaws, executive director Tim Scott said Thursday.
Newton is Class 7A’s third-ranked team, and its 9-0 record represents the best start in program history.
Teams found to be using an ineligible player must forfeit all games in which the player participates.
In the past 10 years, the GHSA has forced five football teams to forfeit at least six games, most including playoff victories, after the season was over.
Scott stressed that allegations are common and don’t usually end in penalties.
“We get quite a few things, across all the sports, and most of them turn out to be nothing,” Scott said. “I don’t have any idea whether (this one) is true. They may be fine. People send stuff in all the time. Almost daily we get something about some school somewhere. Some are true. Some are not.”
According to GHSA bylaw 2.37, requests to investigate the eligibility of a player who has transferred must be filed at least 20 days before the end of the regular season, which is Saturday, in order for penalties to be assessed before the playoffs end.
The rule is designed to prevent schools from withholding allegations until they can inflict the most forfeit damage.
Scott said Newton is the only football team currently under investigation.
AJC Varsity has reached out to Newton for comment.
This past offseason, the GHSA forced Locust Grove to forfeit eight victories, making its record 1-10 instead of 9-2. The allegations of ineligible players were known in October but not ruled on until January.
Other teams forced to forfeit six or more games after a completed season include Appling County in 2024, Valdosta and George Walton Academy in 2020, and Marietta in 2017.