Lawsuit seeks injunction enabling Ursuline football players to transfer, play at other schools

Law firm BetrasKopp, on Monday, announced it had filed a lawsuit seeking injunction that will enable student athletes trapped in scandal-plagued Ursuline High School football program to transfer to other schools.

The attorney’s office stated that after Ursuline High School cancelled the 2025 football season in the midst of allegations that some players had engaged in hazing, sexual misconduct, physical abuse, and harassment during an out of state team trip, a number of student athletes who were not involved in the incidents explored the possibility of transferring to and playing for other schools this year.

On Sept. 16, the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA), the body that governs interscholastic athletics in the state, ruled they could not.

On Monday, the lawsuit filed on behalf of six of the players, Attorneys Brian Kopp and Frank Cassese of BetrasKopp LLC asked the Mahoning County Common Pleas Court to issue a Temporary Restraining Order as well as temporary and permanent injunctions that will prevent the OHSAA, its Executive Director Douglas Ute, and/or his agents from enforcing that ruling.

“These student athletes have done nothing wrong,” said Kopp. “Through no fault of their own they’ve been robbed of the opportunity to play for Ursuline, and, in the case of seniors, to ever play high school football again. If a parent believes it is best to transfer their child out of Ursuline High School so they can continue their athletic careers they should have the right to do so. This lawsuit was filed to guarantee that right will not be restricted by the OHSAA’s arbitrary and unjust decisions.”

In the lawsuit the plaintiffs assert that the rules and by-laws the OHSAA cited in denying students the right to transfer are neither pertinent nor applicable to Ursuline’s situation because they are intended to “prevent student athletes from ‘shopping around’ for a school to attend based solely on which school will best showcase the student’s athletic talents, which, in turn, would promote an atmosphere of athletic recruiting at the high school level.”

“The OHSAA is sending a troubling message to high school student-athletes and parents across Ohio: ‘Blow the whistle and get benched,’” said Cassese. “Student athletes who observe the type of behavior that allegedly occurred at Ursuline are going to think twice about reporting it if the OHSAA insists on punishing the innocent right along with the guilty. Mr. Ute and his staff should have done their due diligence and allowed those who were not involved in the incident to transfer to another school and move on with their lives. Instead, the clear directive moving forward is remain silent or risk losing everything.”

In the suit the plaintiffs note they will suffer irreparable harm if injunctive relief is not granted:

Plaintiffs do not have monetary damages. They are being prevented from participating in interscholastic athletics because of the actions of other individuals. The fleeting nature of high school sports means that Plaintiffs can never recoup the missed contests that are played while this unjustified penalty from the OHSAA remains enforced. Plaintiffs have and will continue to suffer irreparable harm through the OHSAA’s decisions, for which there is no adequate remedy at law. A temporary restraining order and preliminary and permanent injunction enjoying Defendants from enforcing the OHSAA’s decision is the only available remedy.

“Our clients aren’t ‘shopping around’ for a better school because they want to, they’re seeking permission to transfer because the Diocese of Youngstown and Ursuline’s administration failed to deal with allegations of misconduct in early June,” said Kopp. “Now, as a result of the OHSAA’s ruling, these students are trapped in an institution plagued by civil and criminal action and a football program shrouded in uncertainty. Fortunately, the Court has the power to set them free by issuing the TRO and injunctions we are seeking.”

This story was originally published September 22, 2025 at 2:38 PM.