When Bishop Sycamore and IMG Academy (Florida) ran onto the field Sunday, it appeared at first glance to all who watched on ESPN that they were watching a game between two top-notch high school football programs.
But by the end of the first quarter, it was obvious that things were not as they appeared.
ESPN Catfished
Bishop Sycamore claimed to be a high school based in Columbus Ohio. But no evidence of supporting information exists to verify that claim.
From the opening kickoff, Bishop Sycamore was not on the same skill level as IMG, the No. 2 ranked team in the country according to MaxPreps.
Bishop Sycamore boasted that its roster was filled with D-1 talent. That clearly was not the case after six minutes elapsed in the 2nd quarter with Bishop Sycamore down 30-0. The final score was 58-0 in favor of IMG Academy.
The names on the Sycamore roster also could not be verified in any recruiting listings or services.
A proper vetting process would include research into the coaching staff, cross-checking players with recruiting rankings, looking at the previous schedules played, and the current season’s strength of schedule.
Bishop Sycamore has multiple games scheduled against other powerhouse programs this season, including Duncanville (Texas).
Oh, and they played a game on Friday, two days before the IMG game. Several players in the game against IMG played in that game on Friday.
Who is Bishop Sycamore?
It still isn’t clear if Bishop Sycamore is a school that actually exists for the 2021-22 school year.
The Ohio Department of Education lists no school by that name.
The school is required to file a certification report that they are meeting the operating standards that all schools in Ohio must abide by. There is no evidence that a certifying report was even filed.
The school’s mailing address… is a post office box. But it does list a “physical address” as 3599 Chiller Lane in Columbus, which is the address of an indoor sports facility.
Bishop Sycamore is not a member of the Ohio High School Athletic Association, which requires member schools to play at least two sports in each of the fall, winter, and spring seasons during the school year.
Beyond Bizarre
Their prowess on the football field obviously is a farce. Since becoming a program in 2020, Bishop Sycamore has not won a game and has been outscored 342-49.
The roster and the ages of Bishop Sycamore players have come into question as well, many of whom could be much older than 19 years old. One of the “younger” players on the roster is age 18.
The operations of Bishop Sycamore are unknown and it is unclear how it ended up on ESPN. After the game, the head coach of Bishop Sycamore expressed his desire for guidance on how to do things “right.”
That same head coach desiring to do things right reportedly has an active warrant for his arrest on fraud charges, according to a report on complex.com.
But, that desire to do things right should have been the first of many considerations and discussions had among all school officials involved, and certainly before they ran out of that tunnel for their first game in 2020.
It is a strange and bizarre story that is evolving more each day.
Tony Thomas is a freelance writer. He also writes about college football on his own site, www.thegridironnews.com.
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