Maine South to forfeit nine wins from 2022 football season due to violation, IHSA says

PARK RIDGE, Ill. - Maine South High School will forfeit nine wins from the 2022 football season after acknowledging ineligible players participated in games, according to a statement from the Illinois High School Association.

The penalties follow a joint investigation between the IHSA, Maine South High School, and Maine Township High School District 207, the statement said.

The school and the district self-reported that multiple players violated IHSA bylaw 3.030, which bars players from participating in games while not residing in the school's attendance area during the season.

"The IHSA recently received credible information that Maine South football players who did not reside in the district participated on the team during the 2022 IHSA football season," IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson said in a statement. "After a thorough review, they self-reported violations of the IHSA residence by-laws by multiple student-athletes on its 2022 football roster."

The Hawks will forfeit wins against Barrington, Bolingbrook, Evanston, Glenbrook North, Glenbrook South, New Trier, Niles West, South Elgin and Stevenson.

The school's football program has also been put on probation through the end of the 2023-24 school year, the high school sports association said.

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If Maine South commits any future violations, the IHSA said the program may be removed from the state football playoffs.

"I commend Maine Township High School District 207 and Maine South High School personnel for recognizing the serious nature of these allegations and their diligence in investigating and reporting these violations," Anderson said. "I believe that District 207 has already begun to take appropriate steps to prevent future issues like this from occurring again and will aid them in any way that I can in that process."

The school district released the following statement:

"We fully support the IHSA and accept the sanctions," Superintendent Dr. Ken Wallace said. "Along with Maine South football coach David Inserra, we will work diligently to ensure this never happens again. Coach Inserra is a dedicated educator and coach, and we know that he will work tirelessly with us to eliminate this issue. We need to follow the rules and regulations set forth by the IHSA, as well as the law in Illinois related to school residency. In this situation, I am most disappointed for the student-athletes on the 2022 Maine South football team who will bear the brunt of these penalties. Because of our location and the quality of our schools, we have always had instances of families trying to send students to our schools without establishing legal residency."

"We are committed to ensuring that only students who reside in Maine Township High School District 207 are attending our schools," Wallace added. "We owe it to our taxpayers to be diligent with residency issues and will continue to improve our residency process to ensure only families living in District 207 are sending their children to our schools. We will actively pursue any families that break the law and try to illegally enroll students in District 207, whether for athletic and/or academic reasons. Not only will students be dis-enrolled, but families will be held liable for the cost of tuition as required by law."

Tim O’Halloran has covered high school football for 30 years and says he could think of 50 or 100 schools in the same position right now.

"I see parents more and more picking up and moving to different areas, different school districts. If they think their kid has a better shot at playing or getting college scholarships, they’re gonna pick up and move," he said.

The Main South Hawks have won six state championship titles under the current head coach who has served at the school for almost three decades.