The Fordyce Redbugs won’t take the field Sept. 26 as scheduled, but they will still add a victory to their record after Barton High School was forced to forfeit its conference opener.
The Arkansas Activities Association announced Tuesday that 10 Barton players were suspended following a fight in the third quarter of the Bears’ 42-0 win over Marianna. The sanctions left Barton without enough players to safely compete against Fordyce, prompting the school to cancel the matchup.
With the forfeit, the Redbugs will be awarded the conference victory. The game was slated for Frank McClellan Field after Barton’s open date on Sept. 19.
Barton Superintendent Bruce Guthrie said the decision was difficult but unavoidable given the suspensions.
“Even if we challenged the suspensions that we deem questionable, we would still not have the players necessary to not be risking the safety of the remaining players,” Guthrie said.
Fordyce will now turn its attention to the remainder of its conference slate, while Barton (2-2, 0-1) is expected to return Oct. 3 at Palestine-Wheatley.
