Alabama high school football has some of the finest coaches and programs of just about anywhere.
But the actions, first, of now-ex members of the Hoover High School coaching staff in August have been joined by similarly insane fighting from the parent of a player and the quarterback of Citronelle High School have brought another negative spotlight onto prep football in Alabama.
Following Citronelle's win Friday night against Mobile-based UMS Wright Preparatory School, cell phone video captured a brawl breaking that featured Chris Edwards, father of quarterback Daylon Edmunds, running towards and attacking another individual.
Video shared on the X (formerly Twitter) account of Simone Eli, sports director for Mobile's CBS affiliate WKRG, shows the elder Edmunds strike a man three times during a chaotic post-game scene unfolding while Citronelle is being gathered at midfield following the contest's conclusion.
Moments into the video, Daylon Edmunds, a senior and the team's starting quarterback, is seen rushing into the fracas and punching an individual directly in the face, resulting in that man slumping forward against another individual.
As Eli notes, the elder Edmunds -- as well as Stephen Byrd, father of another Citronelle player -- were charged with disorderly conduct.
Daylon Edmunds was removed from the Citronelle team and suspended from school for a week, his father told Eli.
"We are aware of.a minor altercation that took place after the (Citronelle-UMS Wright Prep) game," Brad Lowell, athletics director for Mobile County Public School System, told WKRG in a statement. "We are investigating and will handle it in accordance with our policies and procedures."
Off to an 5-2 start, Citronelle now must find a new starting quarterback with a trio of regular-season games remaining and a potential playoff bid on the line.
See video of the fight below:
BREAKING: Citronelle QB Daylon Edmunds has been removed from the Wildcats football program following a postgame fight last Friday, his dad Chris Edmunds tells me.
β Simone Eli (@SimoneEli_TV) October 7, 2024
Chris Edmunds and Stephen Byrd, also a Wildcat FB parent, have been charged with disorderly conduct. @WKRG pic.twitter.com/2FxkfJviFv