UIL suspensions rock girls high school basketball in North Texas
DALLAS — The University Interscholastic League handed down suspensions Wednesday to coaches at Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy in Dallas and ruled 18 players ineligible.
The Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy Lady Eagles were expected to compete for a state championship in a few months with a talented roster that included 18 student-athletes who transferred this year from other schools.
But a week before the season is to start, the team has been banned from the playoffs while Head Coach Andrea Robinson along with two assistants have been suspended for two years and removed from the charter school's website.
It's the result of a UIL investigation that includes a public reprimand.
The academy was accused of recruiting student-athletes from other schools, a violation of the rules.
The 18 players who were transfers arrived after Coach Robinson, the four-time state champion at Desoto High School, agreed to take over the team at Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy.
Four of those players have been listed among the top 100 in the nation.
The UIL ruled the 18 players ineligible for the playoffs but has yet to make a decision about whether they can play for Oak Cliff Faith Family during the regular season.
CBS News Texas reached out for comment from the academy but has not heard back yet.
The 18 student-athletes ruled ineligible could regain their eligibility if they return to their former schools within 30 days.