Ejection may keep high school RB star out record books
(CBS) - In his first start as a running back for Texas' Aledo High School, Johnathan Gray scored four touchdowns. He hasn't slowed down since. Now a senior, Gray is on track to break a whole host of Texas and national high school football records. But his campaign for the record books may be in jeopardy because of one questionable penalty that saw Gray ejected from a game.
In the third quarter of Aledo's 33-0 Class 4A-II regional final victory over Stephenville High, Gray was tossed from the game for unsportsmanlike conduct after scoring a touchdown. The score was also invalidated, keeping Gray out of the record books for Texas' high school single-season touchdown record.
After a touchdown earlier in the game, Gray was sitting at 59 TDs for the season - tying a state record he set himself last year. But a few seconds of high-stepping cost the senior RB his second touchdown of the game - the one that would have set a new record.
The unsportsmanlike penalty was Gray's second of the game - the first game when the running back celebrated his first score - which by rule is a mandatory ejection.
The Dallas Morning News has a breakdown of all the records Gray either has in his sights or already has in his pocket. With 199 touchdowns in his high school career, Gray has safely locked up Texas' high school record for years to come. But the national record - 204 set by New Yorker Michael Hart in 2003 - may remain out of his grasp.
The third-quarter ejection also put a damper on Gray's rushing yards - another state record he is in the hunt for. With 10,435 rushing yards in his career, Gray will need to average a colossal 398.5 in his next two games to match the current record held by Texas high school legend Ken Hall, who racked up 11,232 back in the 1950s.
Given Gray's incredible abilities and production, it's impossible to rule out the chance that he will reach the highest echelons of high school athletics. But two unfortunate fouls may have slowed him down enough to keep some of them out of reach.
As for the penalty itself, take a look in the video below and let us know what you think. Were a few high steps enough of a foul to derail one of the greatest careers in the history of high school sports?