A third Moore League football program is coming under the scrutiny of the CIF Southern Section office, as six Long Beach Poly football transfers are now listed on the CIF-SS’ transfer page as “Under Review.” That’s the designation that had been listed for Millikan and Compton players in recent weeks before they were ultimately denied and banned from any high school sports in California for two full years.
Millikan had eight players denied and had to forfeit two wins this season, while Compton had one player denied and did not have to forfeit as the player never played in a game.
The Long Beach Poly administration did not respond to a request for comment, and the CIF-SS declined to comment on the transfers.
The Millikan and Compton players who were denied eligibility and banned for two years were declared ineligible under CIF-SS Bylaw 202, which relates to falsifying documents. The transfers in question had applied for a valid change of residence, which would have granted them immediate eligibility–presumably the documents were found to be falsified thus triggering a 202 penalty were related to establishing new residency.
The other method of transferring is by utilizing the “Sit Out Period,” which means an athlete can move schools without changing addresses as long as they sit out for a prescribed amount of time (five weeks in the case of football season). Several of the Poly players had previously been listed in the CIF-SS transfer portal as “Sit Out Period” players who would have gained eligibility next week.
The issue has been drawing widespread attention across Southern California high school sports circles after the year began with Bishop Montgomery having 19 transfers ruled ineligible, several of whom (along with at least one Millikan player) transferred to Arizona schools to try and continue their careers.
The trend highlights CIF’s intensified enforcement of transfer rules, as the Moore League isn’t the only league that’s been impacted. Bellflower recently had two football athletes ruled ineligible for the same reason.
This is a breaking story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
