Alabama high school forced to forfeit football game after players receive gift cards: ‘They are just students’

Friday night bites.

An Alabama high school football team was stripped of a win when their coach admitted to giving gift cards to his players, unknowingly violating the state’s high school athletic rules.

After Tuscaloosa County High School won their season opener game against Central-Tuscaloosa, 24-21, head coach Adam Winegarden recognized his team’s effort and gifted several players gift cards to a local Buffalo Wild Wings.

The players’ status changed from amateur to professional when they received the gifts, which goes against the Alabama High School Athletic Association rules.

The AHSAA’s Amateur Rule states only amateurs are eligible to participate in league-sanctioned events.

“Professionalism is defined as accepting remuneration, directly or indirectly, for playing on athletic teams and in sports activities or for playing under an assumed name,” the AHSAA said.

Two of the students who received the cards played in Tuscaloosa County’s 55-33 win over Bessemer City in violation of the Amateur Rule as they were non-amateurs competing in the high school game, forcing the school to forfeit their Sept. 1 win.

Winegarden, who gave the cards away as a form of player recognition, never thought he was in violation because the gift cards, which were marked “complimentary cards” could not be redeemed, the Tuscaloosa County School System said in a statement obtained by ABC 33/40.

“I don’t want to see anyone else go through what we’ve been through the past several days, the kids didn’t do anything wrong, they are just students,” Winegarden told ABC 33/40.

An unidentified school notified the AHSAA of the potential breach in policy based on social media posts, according to AL.com, which noted Winegarden was disappointed that the school never called Tuscaloosa County.

“It should be understood that the NCAA’s NIL does NOT apply to current high school student-athletes,” the memo from the AHSAA to the school said. “Current high school student-athletes CANNOT earn money or accept money (cash, check, Venmo, Apple Pay, gift cards, checks, etc.) as a result of their connection to their high school team.

In 2021 the NCAA adopted a policy that allows college student athletes to benefit from their Name Image and Likeness (NIL) by monetizing their social media followings, brand themselves or make paid appearances.

“I don’t want this to happen to any other schools, I don’t want to see students have to sit out a game, like we had to have students sit out of a game for something they did nothing wrong,” Winegarden added. “This isn’t NIL, this is nothing along those lines, this is merely recognizing kids.”

The gift cards were never used and the students involved were reinstated to play after winning an appeals process.

“It’s disappointing, but at the end of the day I’m the head coach and responsible for everything in the program, so if we were wrong, then it’s my responsibility to understand those things and make sure they are applied,” said Winegarden.

Tuscaloosa County is now 2-2 on the season following a win last weekend and Friday night’s 42-7 loss to Hewitt-Trussville.