Update:
In a response to ABC 27 Tuesday, Kevin Richardson, Administrator of Public Relations for the Florida High School Athletic Association, says the players in question submitted EL12 forms containing falsified information.
The statement says Head Coach Russell Ellington allowed the eight student athletes to participate in summer activities with the team before fully completing their non-tradition student registration process.
The FHSAA says that issue was discovered during the course of a compliance audit.
The FHSAA says its current penalty for falsification is a one-year suspension from participation at any FHSAA member school. It also says recent changes mean the coach receives the same penalty as the students.
Update:
WTXL has obtained the Florida High School Athletic Association's sanction letter regarding the investigation at Gadsden County High School regarding student-athletes who participated during the 2024-25 football season. FHSAA is claiming that Head Coach Russell Ellington allowed eight student-athletes to attend and participate in summer activities with the team before said students properly completed the non-traditional student registration process.
In the letter, they claim the school allowed four students to participate without properly reporting the students as non-traditional students. FHSAA says the school wasn't able to provide the original EL12 verification form, which indicated it was either incomplete or not properly filled out at the time of submission. It also claims that the form was missing a signature and, therefore, rendered the form incomplete.
The letter also notes that several students were allowed to play during the season after submitting EL12 forms containing falsified information.
READ FULL FHSAA FINDINGS BELOW:
Original:
The Florida High School Athletic Association has recommended a one-year suspension of Head Football Coach Russell Ellington, and 8 players.
- The preliminary investigation noted registration irregularities
- Coach Russell Ellington says a recommended one-year suspension for the players himself is being appealed
- Read on to see why Ellington says the appeal will likely be overturned
Coach Ellington on Monday posted a letter to social media, via the Gadsden County High School Jaguars Football page.
He says while he desires to coach during the upcoming year, what's most important is that the players be allowed to play during their final season.
Coach Ellington says the FHSAA's recommendation is being appealed. He thinks it will likely be overturned because the alleged irregular registration would not have been the result of actions taken by himself, the athletes, or school officials.
Ellington notes that the FHSAA's findings are preliminary. He says he hopes those involved will be able to share information that can resolve or mitigate the situation fairly.
He also asked supporters to stand with the team.
ABC 27 has reached out to the FHSAA for information on what irregularities were found, how they were discovered, and whether the one-year suspension is a standard penalty for such irregularities.
An image of the letter posted by Coach Ellington is below.
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