Bishop Sycamore High School was supposed to have a top-tier football program, but as they were clobbered 58-0 by IMG Academy in a nationally televised game by ESPN, questions surrounding the results’ legitimacy were raised.

An investigation was launched and found that Bishop Sycamore is a scam, and does not meet the requirements to be labeled an “educational institution” in the state of Ohio. In the 41-page report by the Ohio Department of Education, it says that they were unable to find proof of location, teachers or even enrolled students.

“Ohio families should be able to count on the fact that our schools educate students and don’t exist in name only as a vehicle to play high school sports,” Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said in a written statement Friday.

Legally, Bishop Sycamore was identified as a “non-chartered, non-tax-supported school,” which the ODE doesn’t have oversight over because schools under that label are normally allowed to do things differently due to sincerely held religious beliefs. The ODE could not assess whether or not Bishop Sycamore had those beliefs.

After the 58-0 loss, Bishop Sycamore’s head coach, Ron Johnson was fired. Their new coach Tyren Jackson, seemed to know exactly what kind job he was accepting. He told NBC4 that Bishop Sycamore is not a school.

“That’s not what Bishop Sycamore is, and I think that’s what the biggest misconception about us was, and that was our fault,” Jackson said. “Because that was a mistake on paperwork.”

Jackson did not seem to have previous knowledge that the “school” was registered as a school.

The investigation concluded that Bishop Sycamore was “a way for students to play football against high school teams and potentially increase students’ prospects of playing football at the collegiate level.”

Since the ODE does not have oversight over schools like this, they don’t have the right to penalize Bishop Sycamore for their actions.

Every school slated to play Bishop Sycamore has pulled out in recent days.

Jaden Rashada of Pittsburgh, California is the first high school football player to profit from endorsements since the NCAA changed their rules this summer. Previously, Rashada would not have been able to play collegiately if he accepted money from endorsements. He is be making a four-figure sum to promote the “Athletes In Recruitment” app, by posting on social media.

“It feels pretty good,” Rashada told ESPN. “Maybe it can open up more opportunities for others and people can be more aware of it. It’s a blessing to be able to make some money and promote a good brand.”

James Sackville, AIR’s founder and former punter at SMU, created the app last year to help streamline the recruitment process for athletes, anyone who is advising them and college coaches.

“There’s no better person to talk about recruiting than someone who has recently gone through the process or is currently going through the process,” Sackville said. “It’s been a resounding success so far, and after talking with Jaden it was a literal no-brainer to work with him.”

California is one of five states that allow high schoolers to make money off endorsements, and Rashada says he made sure to do his research to understand what was allowed in California. He also retained an adviser, Ethan Weinstein, to help him.

Rashada is currently ranked in the top 5 quarterbacks, and is the best dual-threat quarterback, in the 2023 recruiting class. He hasn’t committed to a college yet but told ESPN that he will not make his decision based on where he can make the most money of NIL deals. Offers have already come in from Auburn, Arizona State, Oklahoma, Penn State, UCLA and Oregon.

On Friday, before the Lake Norman High School and Vance High School played each other for first place in their conference, Lake Norman head coach Jonathan Oliphant wanted to do something special for senior Sam Jordan.

Jordan, who has down syndrome has been the manager of the team since he was a freshman.

“We wanted to do something for him that he wouldn’t forget,” Oliphant said.

On Thursday night, when the junior varsity Lake Norman team and Vance faced one another, Oliphant pitched the idea of letting Jordan run for a touchdown before the two varsity teams played to Vance varsity coach Glenwood Ferebee. Ferebee agreed to the idea, and both set the plan in motion.

Before the game started, Jordan lined up Lake Norman’s backfield with the ball marked at the 50-yard line. Jordan was given the handoff and ran through the field and defenders. Vance defenders trailed Jordan and fell as the team manager ran to the endzone with ease. Once Jordan reached the end, he was greeted by players on both teams for celebration.

“It was great,” said Ferebee. “My background is in special education, and I identify with those kids and I understand how special they are. I talked to my kids and said, ‘Make sure that kid has the best moment because he’ll remember this for the rest of his life.’”

It was a heartwarming moment and action made by both teams. “You try to teach these kids to be good people and good husbands and good dads,” Oliphant said. “At some point, the Man Upstairs will judge us all, and I try to live by the Golden Rule, and I try to get these kids to do the same.”

“The world’s a crazy place right now, but I think we made his night,” stated Oliphant.

Clemson University’s Football program is continuing to build for the future. Will Shipley is currently ranked 22 and as the second-best running back in the Class of 2021 ESPN 300 has committed to the Tigers on Tuesday. 

Shipley had his choice of schools but ultimately picked Clemson over Stanford, Notre Dame, North Carolina and North Carolina State. 

Shipley said Clemson provides the best opportunity for the North Carolina native to play in front of his family and friends from home. “I know for me, it’s a place I can go where the people from my town, the people that have helped me get to where I am today, where they can come watch me,” Shipley told SI. “They can come see me do my thing and put on for my people.”

Shipley also noted that going to Clemson gives him the best opportunity to win a National Championship. “It gives me an opportunity to win national championships and create relationships with guys that are very similar to me, you know that will carry on through the rest of my life,” he said. The Tigers have appeared in the College Football Playoff every year since 2015, winning the National Championship in 2016 and 2018, and making it to the title game in 2015 and 2019. 

Last season for Weddington High School in Matthews, North Carolina, Shipley ran for over 2000 yards, had another 580 receiving yards, and scored 42 total touchdowns.

Shipley credits his skill on the football field to be a dual-sport athlete, also playing lacrosse. He says that one area where he plays on the lacrosse field that translates to the football field is his cutting ability, noting “It’s helped me so much with my horizontal cutting, acceleration, quickness, and change of speed. Being a multi-sport athlete, I think is the best thing that I probably ever did, in terms of getting me ready for college football and you know, being the most ready as early as I can.”

Now that this whole recruiting process is over, Shipley looks forward to taking some time for himself and spending time with his family.

Terrell Kennedy isn’t a large running back, but he came up huge on Wednesday night. The 5-foot-11, 185-pound rusher broke the 200 yard mark and scored both of his school’s touchdowns to give McGill-Toolen their first Alabama state title in a 14-12 win over Spain Park.

“I couldn’t be more proud of a group of kids,” second-year head coach Caleb Ross told Al.com after the game. “We were 4-6 last year and a lot of people doubted us, but we didn’t. Our boys didn’t doubt themselves. We set a goal in January to win a state championship. Most people think coming off 4-6, the goal should be just to get in the playoffs. That wasn’t our kids’ goal. They worked at it, believed in it, and tonight made it happen.”

The coach was even more impressed with Kennedy, who only took over the running back role after an mid-season injury sidelined Cole Sharp. “The play Terrell scored on was just an inside zone,” Ross explained. “He made a great run. He’s been our guy the last six or seven weeks. He has great vision. He sees the hole, and he accelerates through it.”

But as proud as the head coach was, his emotions couldn’t compare to DeAnthony Washington, Kennedy’s teammate and cousin. “He’s just spectacular,” Washington said. “I’m proud of him. I’m loving him right now. He told me we were going all the way. I had no doubt that with the lights on, he was going to make the plays. I was just telling him to keep his ears pinned back and keep running it.”