El Cerrito High’s head football coach has been placed on administrative leave after a 2019 video surfaced showing a controversial football drill, according to the West Contra Costa Unified School District.
The video showed a so-called “machine gun” drill during which a player is repeatedly hit by two other players. A source told NBC Bay Area that Head Coach Jacob Rincon wasn’t at practice at the time the video was taken, and that his assistant coach who ran the practice was fired shortly after.
Still, Rincon has been placed on leave in light of the video and the reaction it is receiving online.
The WCCUSD confirmed in a statement to the Standard that the video was taken in 2019. The district said it is investigating the incident and does not tolerate “anything that puts our students’ safety at risk,” adding, “the drills displayed are unacceptable.”
“We have placed the head coach on administrative leave until a full investigation is complete,” the district said.
Former NFL Coach Jim Mora was among a number of high-profile sports personalities to decry the drill seen in the video, which garnered millions of views online. Mora Tweeted the drill “is so far out of line, it’s horrible.”
“Who can ever justify this?” Mora added. “If a coach teaches this, he isn’t someone you should EVER allow your kid around. This is horrible.”
See more on this story at NBC Bay Area by clicking here.
This is so far out of line, it’s horrible. Who can ever justify this? If a coach teaches this, he isn’t someone you should EVER allow your kid around. This is horrible
— Jim Mora (@jim_morafb) October 9, 2021
