EUCLID, Ohio — Euclid High School will have an opponent for its Senior Night football game on Friday, following the decision by Solon High School not to travel to Euclid.
On Thursday, Euclid announced that it will play River Rouge High School from Wayne County, Michigan on Friday night. The game will be played at Euclid Community Stadium with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
"We had initially had a team scheduled. We had to move some places around because of teams that had originally agreed to play us, then, backed out of the contract," said River Rouge Superintendent Dr. Derrick Coleman. "So, it's just, you know, again, as fate would have it, we ended up with an opening this weekend. It appears that they did as well."
Earlier this week, Euclid City Schools Superintendent Christopher Papouras announced that the game between the Panthers and the Solon Comets would not be taking place. "The Solon City School District has chosen to forfeit the game instead of making the journey to Euclid Community Stadium," he wrote.
The decision by Solon not to travel north to Euclid this Friday came just days after Euclid school officials moved last week's home high school football game to Brunswick following unspecified "inappropriate and inexcusable behavior on and off our campus" among a select number of students.
Solon school officials stated on Thursday that the decision not to go to Euclid to play the game "was a safety decision due to the absence of clear communication from Euclid that included a robust safety plan surrounding all aspects of the game and fan/student attendance in light of recent violence on and around their school campus."
"We have always enjoyed our friendly rivalry with Euclid, including the away games, the district added in its statement to 3News. "We were looking forward to this week’s game as well. Our first choice was always to play the varsity game as scheduled this week. We did not refuse to play. We provided several options to achieve compromise and allow the game to continue, including playing at a neutral site."
Since Euclid was not willing to move the game to Solon, school officials there say the game has been canceled. "Per Ohio High School Athletic Association regulations, a regular season game that is canceled is considered a “no contest,” not a forfeiture. A “no contest” shall not be included in won-lost records," Solon leaders added, disputing the notion that they will be forfeiting.
Papouras disagreed with the notion that Euclid would not be a safe place in which to host the game.
"We want to emphasize that Euclid Schools are committed to hosting events only when we can ensure our local community's and visiting opponents' safety," he stated. "Therefore, we find no reason to move Friday night’s game."
Coleman says he's not concerned about safety for his students and staff making the trip from Michigan.
"Our schools are nestled in urban communities, right? There's a level of violence that is consistent with the socioeconomic level. We're comfortable operating in that. So we had zero concern about coming down there. We were thankful that we were able to have a game," he said.
3News' Lindsay Buckingham also spoke with Euclid Police Department Captain Mitch Houser to get a sense of the nature of previous crime problems surrounding high school football.
"Most of the fights that we're dealing with are kids. Not all, but most. And, you know, high school age, they occur almost exclusively after the game," Houser told Buckingham. "It's after the game's over and there's hundreds, if not a thousand people or so in the parking lot. And, whatever squabbles they had at school or during the game or, or even on the internet, uh, are acted out in violence. And that's the problem that we're facing."
While Euclid will take on River Rouge on Friday, Solon elected not to add an opponent on its schedule for this week.
"Not playing on Friday night is a disappointment for our school community too," Solon leaders added in its statement. 'We tried at multiple turns to foster compromise in the spirit of fair play and safety. Solon athletic, school and district officials initiated several conversations to discuss alternatives that would enable the Solon-Euclid varsity game to be played on Friday night. Each of these overtures was dismissed out of hand. Euclid officials were adamant that the game be played in Euclid on Friday night. Without any consideration for alternative solutions and the lack of communication on a comprehensive safety plan, this left us no choice."
In the meantime, the Euclid Panthers will travel to Solon on Thursday for the Freshman football game and again on Saturday for the JV game "in the spirit of sportsmanship and friendly competition."
On Friday, a Euclid City School District spokesperson gave the following statement to 3News:
"The preparation involving team itineraries, security maps, and the GameDay Administration packets are standard operating practices we have had in place for years. We are proud hosts to area teams and for OHSAA playoff games. We are disappointed in any inaccurate reports promoting a false narrative that we do not have comprehensive plans in place for every game hosted in Euclid. This week is no exception, regardless of the opponent."