THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 10, 1994 TAG: 9408100597
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARC DAVIS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 59 lines
A federal judge, reluctant to intervene in a school dispute, refused on Tuesday to let a 19-year-old high school student play football.
But Judge Richard G. Doumar said he may reconsider his decision on Aug. 29, after the player, Granby running back Lorenzo Thompson, pursues a final appeal with the Virginia High School League. Thompson can practice with the team until his eligibility status is settled.
The league refuses to let Thompson play this season because he is overage. The league bans students who turn 19 before Oct. 1. Thompson turned 19 in May.
Thompson was held back in first and third grades so he could learn to read and do math. He sought a waiver to the age rule but was refused twice - by the league's district council in May, and by the state executive committee last week.
Thompson now is suing the league in federal court. His attorneys claim that the age rule is arbitrary and unconstitutional because it denies Thompson a right that other high school students enjoy.
On Tuesday, Doumar considered whether to grant Thompson a temporary injunction to let him play while the case is pending. Granby plays two games before Thompson's case comes to trial Sept. 13.
Thompson has one last appeal within the league, to a five-member panel of superintendents and school board members. That probably will be heard next week in Charlottesville.
If the panel refuses to let Thompson play, the case will return to Doumar's court on Aug. 29. At that time, Doumar said, he will decide whether to grant Thompson a temporary injunction.
League officials say the age limit is needed to protect younger players' safety and to ensure competitive balance among teams.
But on Tuesday, the judge said safety is not an issue because Thompson, at 5-foot-11 and 172 pounds, is not very big.
``I'm not buying the safety rule. Forget it. That's out,'' Doumar said.
Thompson's attorneys argue that if he cannot play his senior year, his chances of getting a college scholarship are much less. Thompson was the leading scorer for Granby last season, running for seven touchdowns.
League officials, however, say Thompson may be academically ineligible for a scholarship. He has a C-minus grade-point average and scored 510 on his Preliminary School Aptitude Test. Colleges require a C average and 700 on the SATs.
On Tuesday, the judge said he is most concerned about two issues:
Does Thompson's case belong in federal court?
Did the league, by granting exemptions to some 19-year-olds, make its age policy unconstitutional?
``I have some problem with a rule that applies to some people and not to others,'' Doumar said at the end of Tuesday's four-hour hearing. by CNB