Ursuline parents and coach react to cancelled season, call it unfair

After Ursuline cancelled the rest of their football season, dozens of parents and one coach gathered to say enough is enough, stop punishing the innocent ones.

"Every kid that was on this team didn't, you know, do egregious things," Assistant Football Coach Chauncey Harris said.

Speaking out for the first time since the hazing and sexual assault allegations came out against the school, Harris is calling for more awareness into the effects of these actions.

"There should've been education in place, you know, what is hazing? What does that mean, what does that look like? There should've been education in place for what is sexual assault? What does that mean, what does that look like," he said.

Some parents are pushing for the chance for their kids to earn a scholarship.

"I have a senior at Ursuline, last year he was a junior. He had a knee injury. He worked really hard through the winter and the spring to get back to be able to go out and get the offers that he wanted so that he could go to college. Everybody wants to go to college. College is expensive, football is a way for them to get the scholarships to go," an Ursuline parent who wishes to be identified as just Nadia said. "My son was not on this trip but due to the circumstances he doesn't get to play, he doesn't get another chance to play. This hope and dream was stolen from my child," she said.

One father who recently had heart surgery focused on getting better so that he could be around to potentially walk his son across the 50 yard line for senior night.

"I told him I said if you just focus on football, allow me to focus on my health, I will do whatever I need to do to be there...to be there for you," Bre Boudrey said through tears. "I watched my son over the past 4 years workout six days a week. I've seen the blisters on his feet, I've seen the miles he ran, the countless days at the gym and to see that he be named captain after three, four hard years of working hard and to have it snatched away it just hurt," he said.

Boudrey adds, his son came to him to ask for advice after the Warren Harding game was cancelled and that for 17 years, as his father, he has always had the answers. However, this time Boudrey said he had to look his son in his face and tell him, "'I don't know...I don't know what to do,' and that's the thing that hurts the most."

It's a dream that was snatched from them both.

Some parents feel the school did not handle the situation well.

"I do feel it was mishandled by Ursuline by not responding at all, by standing back and not saying anything," Ken Ruby, Ursuline parent said. "When the public's only getting one side of the story, what're they gonna believe? The only side that they see. When Ursuline finally did stand up and say something, it was too little too late," he said.

Concerns were also raised about Ursuline community members being mistreated.

"I've heard a lot of people getting death threats, getting things that wasn't deserving of their children," Harris said. "This isn't just about football, it's about life. It's band members and people that go to the school that are getting threats, that are getting slandered that are hearing things about their lives that are not true," he said.

"Anybody affiliated with Ursuline is guilty, just by affiliation. Everybody has been found guilty in the public eye," Ruby said.

Harris and every parent present believed the season should not have ended.

"I'm not a fan of saying everybody dies for everybody's sins. I believe that action should've been made for anybody that did egregious acts that were found out, not that were you know alleged, but was actually found out this person did this act. Maybe they should have some time away," Harris said. "It's supposed to be innocent until proven guilty. That didn't happen in this situation, it was 'you're guilty, and everything's cancelled.' It shouldn't have been that. The season shouldn't be a wash because now the kids that now don't have a hope to go anywhere else...even if it's three games, let the kids that weren't involved in the egregious alleged acts let them get a chance to play," he said.

"I know how this coaching staff is with our boys. They push them hard, everybody wants to play for Ursuline," a parent who wishes to be identified only as Tara, said. "I honestly think that's a lot of the reason why everybody...because they don't wanna play us," she said.

Harris is urging the public to have compassion for the students.

"The damage is done, some of these kids are having trouble eating or going to class, lifting weights, they believe that their life is done. I'm praying for everybody involved," Harris said. "But also, I want everybody to understand this term to have grace, to have mercy for people. We're not perfect nobody on this earth is perfect and if something was egregiously done to somebody there's a consequence to that, yes I agree, but it shouldn't be a consequence for everybody," he said.

Harris said the conversation has been very one sided so he's speaking out because it's not right, unfair and unrighteous.