TAPPS, the state association of private and parochial schools, has removed Argyle Liberty Christian from this year's football playoffs. The team had been considered a state title favorite and had already forfeited games for using an ineligible player. At a board meeting Tuesday, TAPPS found the school in violation of its "follow the coach" rule. The association said a transfer student-athlete played on a 7-on-7 team coached by a Liberty Christian assistant football coach in the year before transferring, and that school leaders knew or should have known of this before the 2026 season.
TAPPS redrew its eight-team Division I playoff bracket. The first round has been delayed one week, to Nov. 14, so teams can prepare for their new opponents. Under TAPPS bylaws, a transfer cannot play varsity in a sport for one year if a coach at the new school coached or trained them in the previous 12 months. Association rules say using an ineligible player in a game carries a minimum penalty of forfeiture, whether the use was knowing or unknowing. Multiple people with knowledge of the situation told The Dallas Morning News that the athlete is a wide receiver.
In a statement to families and NBC 5, Liberty Christian said it strongly disagrees with the ruling and had given TAPPS evidence it said showed its innocence. The school said it is considering its legal options.