NMAA tweaks ruling on Belen-Valley brawl

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The Valley Vikings and Belen Eagles are the first two teams in the state to get a strike under the new NMAA “two-strikes” rule.

If a team gets two strikes for egregious behavior, the rest of their season is canceled.

The NMAA has released an update, saying they are modifying the initial ruling. Their full statement is below:

“Following a review of additional film provided by Valley High School after the initial ruling, the New Mexico Activities Association has modified its decision regarding the incident that took place on September 8, 2023. Although multiple player ejections will stand, the Valley football team will be able to move forward with its game versus Los Lunas HS with the remaining players who were identified as not involved in the incident.  The strike on the Valley football team for egregious behavior will remain.  Belen High School must still forfeit its next game due to the amount of player ejections that resulted from the incident. The strike on the Belen football team for egregious behavior will also remain.  This will be the only comment the NMAA will make on this matter.”