High school football is about to get underway, however, the Reedsburg Area (Wis.) High School football team will not get to play games when the rest in the area begin.
An investigation into the Reedsburg football team has resulted in the school canceling the program's first two games of the 2024 season. This comes after multiple players on the team were issued citations for disorderly conduct.
Reedsburg Area High School is a public school based out of Reedsburg, Wis., some 65 miles northwest of Madison in the south central part of the state. The Beavers went 1-8 in 2023, including an 0-7 record in the Mississippi Valley conference.
Here is more to know about the program and its investigation.
Reedsburg High School football team investigation
Reedsburg High School has canceled the varsity football program's first two games of the season after nine of the players were cited for harassing the Amish community in the area.
"Sauk County Deputies were conducting extra patrol in the rural Reedsburg area, after multiple reports of harassment behavior towards members of the Amish Community," according to an press release from the sheriff’s department on Aug. 25. "Contact was made with a suspect vehicle involved. As a result of the investigation, nine juveniles from the Reedsburg area were cited for disorderly conduct."
Sauk County Sheriff Chip Meister said he could confirm that "some" of the juveniles cited for disorderly conduct are members of the Reedsburg High School football team. However, he was not positive if all nine members were.
"We are devastated that many of our student athletes will be missing out on contests. In particular, we empathize with our seniors who will be facing a shortened season this year," Reedsburg Area High School principal Katie Mathews said. "However, above all we are a teaching and learning institution. While this, without question, is a painful learning experience, we will never compromise the integrity of the Reedsburg Area High School or its students, staff, and families, and we will not let it define us."
Sauk County Sheriff’s Department would not immediately release further information as the incident involved juveniles.
According to social media posts speculating about the event, the students allegedly vandalized property owned by the Amish community, which included a school and a barn. Students also allegedly threw firecrackers and shot paintballs at horses owned by Amish families.
The team did not play its scheduled Aug. 23 season opener, and will not play its previously scheduled game Aug. 30. If no other changes are made to the schedule, Reedsburg will begin its season Sept. 6 against Central High School at UW-La Crosse.