Rockwall Heath HS football coach on leave after push-up penalty

ROCKWALL, Texas – A Rockwall high school football coach was fired after some players needed medical attention after practice.

The principal of Rockwall Heath High School said steps are being taken to find out exactly what happened.

The school district said it has hired an “independent third party” to investigate the incident.

The school’s head football coach is accused of requiring a group of football players to do a large number of push-ups.

Coach John Harrell has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation.

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In a letter to parents, the school said the incident occurred Friday during an offseason football program.

It didn’t say how many push-ups the students had to do, but a person who emailed FOX 4 said it was set as several hundred.

The school said several athletes required medical attention and “some” were hospitalized.

The letter did not mention how many went to the hospital, nor did it specify what was wrong with the students.

According to the parent of the hospitalized child, it was 300 push-ups in an hour without a break or water.

That parent, who asked FOX 4 not to be identified, said, “As parents, we send our children to school with the confidence that they will be cared for at the highest level. That has been the case until this unfortunate event.”

They said their child had been diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis.

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Coach Harrell was appointed head football coach at Rockwall Heath a year ago. He has worked as a coach in the school’s football program since 2019.

He has also coached other programs in North Texas.

Brady Luff, junior captain of the football team, said he was at practice and he believes Coach Harrell was not punishing the players, but instilling discipline.

“I’m praying for all the parties in the hospital. They’re my brothers,” Luff said.

He said water was available and the players were free to leave.

“He has treated us with nothing but respect and loves each one of us as his own,” Luff said.

His mother also defends the coach.

“So if anything had happened in this situation where I thought these kids were going to be harmed, I would have been the first person in the principal’s office or wherever I needed to go to get this shut down,” Stephanie Luff said.

Last Monday, the school’s athletic trainer released messages to the families of players in this offseason program.

The trainer advised to watch for symptoms such as sharp pain in the arm and stomach problems.

The district said it has been in contact with the families and athletes of those affected.

FOX 4 reached out to the district by phone and email Wednesday to ask specific questions, such as how many students were hospitalized, how many push-ups they did and whether there are official protocols for the exercises.

The district did not respond.