South Carolina high school football player suffers third-degree burns after practice punishment

A South Carolina man says his son was burned on football field turf.

Lance Poynor, the father, says his son, Cade Poynor, suffered third-degree burns during Buford High School’s football practice when players were told to bear crawl on hot turf in Lancaster County, South Carolina.

The bear crawls were part of a punishment given by the weightlifting coach, who is now suspended.

The father says the injuries were so bad that his son Cade couldn’t play football last week.

“That day, if I remember, it was between 85 and 90 degrees,” Poynor said. “And if it’s 85 or 90 degrees outside, that turf is gonna be a lot hotter than that.”

Poynor says Cade showed the coach his injuries and asked to see a doctor.

“The coach said they weren’t gonna see the medical doctor. They were going to lift weights. They were going to work the pain out of their hands.”

Cade eventually went to a doctor and was diagnosed with second and third-degree burns, so serious he was forced to sit out a team scrimmage last weekend.

According to Poynor, about six other players had similar injuries. He and some other parents filed a report with the Lancaster County sheriff’s office.

“For him to go home and come in in that condition really upset me,” said Poynor. “If we can’t trust him around our kids, he really doesn’t need to be an authority figure at the school.”

A district spokesperson said the employee is on administrative leave while leaders investigate. They would not comment further.

On Friday, a spokesman for that office said they investigated but decided not to file charges after talking to the solicitor.