Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

Legislator wants Bishop Gorman banned from football playoffs

Gorman vs. Reed

Jeff Mulvihill Jr., Special to the Sun

Bishop Gorman’s Biaggio Walsh (7) on his way to the end zone for one of his touchdowns during the NIAA State Championship game against the Reed Raiders at Damonte Ranch High School in Reno.

Bishop Gorman vs. Reed

Bishop Gorman Brandon Gahagan (3) returns the opening kickoff deep into Reed territory during the NIAA State Championship Football game between the Bishop Gorman Gaels and the Reed Raiders at Damonte Ranch High School in Reno, Nevada. Launch slideshow »

Assemblyman Harvey Munford, D-Las Vegas, has proposed a bill-draft for the 2015 Legislature that would ban the Bishop Gorman football program for the state-championship playoffs.

Munford, who coached for 15 years in the Clark County School District, is proposing the bill because he says the Catholic college-preparatory school has large advantages over the public schools they play.

Gorman was recently named the No. 1 team in the nation by the MaxPreps Top 25 football rankings. The Gaels, who have been featured on national ESPN network telecasts, defeated Reed High of Sparks, 70-28, for Nevada's large-school state championship recently.

It capped a 14-0 season for the Gaels, who won their sixth consecutive state football title.

Munford contends that Gorman has the ability to grant scholarships and recruit athletes from across the Las Vegas Valley while the schools they compete against are usually confined to athletes who live within that school's district boundaries.The current system gives Gorman unfair advantages, Munford said.

"The best team in the north just got beat in the state championship game by a team that scored 70 points on them," Munford said. "They do the same to the schools in Las Vegas. Come on, Gorman should be a totally independent school, one that does not compete with other high schools."

Eddie Bonine, the executive director of the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association, declined comment on the bill-draft request but said the idea of Gorman being banned from the state playoffs is not a new one.

"Dating long before Eddie Bonine ever came into the state of Nevada, which is over 18 years ago, I guess there were some concerns," Bonine said. "There were some concerns three years or four years ago. I approached BGHS with those concerns on behalf of the Clark County School District and it didn't go real well. And I haven't revisited the issue."

The concerns then were similar to Munford's current concerns, Bonine said.

"It was a recommendation that they change their membership to play more on the national circuit and it was not well received. And that is all I am going to say about that," Bonine said.

Gorman administrators declined comment on Munford's bill-draft proposal. Since the bill has yet to be written, it is unclear if Munford will call for a state playoff ban only for Gorman's football program or for other sports at the school.

Newly-elected Lt. Gov. Mark Hutchison, who is also a citizen coach for the Palo Verde High School football program, did not return an email requesting comment.

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