WEST JORDAN, Utah -- A head coach was suspended and an assistant coach was fired, and Copper Hills High School head football coach John Teuscher called a meeting with his players and their parents Wednesday night.
Jordan School District officials tell FOX13 News that Teuscher had apologized to his players earlier in the day. Teuscher offered no details about his suspension, or offensive coach John Cullen's termination, during his short talk Wednesday night.
Teuscher did say, "There isn't a story, there isn't another thing, there isn't another anything except the young men getting ready to play Jordan."
He echoed that message several times, saying again, "The only real story, and some of them are here, is we have a group of young men that are getting ready to play a football game against a really good Jordan High team Friday night."
Teuscher also mentioned that his suspension and Cullen's termination was a decision from Principal Todd Quarnberg, and he said he respected that.
Victor Rixie has a son on the football team, and he shared his view on the issue.
"All I can say is that I know the administration, Principal Quarnberg, and I trust him very much,” he said. “He's a great guy, and the coaches are absolutely terrific as well."
But others, like Elaine Rixie, still have some questions.
"My questions are, 'Why isn't the athletic director part of this and did they get reprimanded prior too? Were they written up, was it something more serious?’ Because I could be defending a coach that... So I want to know, am I defending the right people, and am I protecting the right people or did we jump the gun?'"
FOX13 spoke with Jordan School District Spokeswoman Sandy Riesgraf, who said all of this ultimately goes back to setting a higher standard for sportsmanship. Riesgraf said the suspension and firing did not stem from a single incident at Friday night's game alone, but she didn't go into more detail.
The Grizzlies have a home game on Friday, September 27 and two games the week after. Teuscher should be allowed back on the field for games the first week of October.
