1. a) Define forfeit as used in the article.
b) For what reason do high school sports teams generally forfeit games?

2. How many teams have forfeited games against Archbishop Murphy High School in Washington state?

3. How does the Granite Falls High School football coach explain the biggest concern administrators had when considering whether to forfeit against Archbishop Murphy?

4. What concerns did Granite Falls players’ parents express in a community meeting three days before the game?

5. a) What were the scores in Granite Falls’ past two games against Archbishop Murphy?
b) Is there any information about whether players got injured the past two years?

6. a) Why did the school hold a community meeting with the principal, athletic director and school district superintendent last Tuesday?
b) How did Granite Falls Athletic Director Joey Johnson initially respond?
c) Why did the administration then agree to forfeit the game?
d) How did the players explain their decision?

7. Watch the two news reports under “Resources” below with comments from the Granite Falls players and from the Archbishop Murphy players.
With whom do you agree? Consider the following:

• Do you think should there be a size limit (must be between a certain height/weight? Not too small, not too big? Should 14 year old, 117 pound players play on the varsity team? Should the 6’8” 256-pound junior who is a Division 1 college recruit be permitted to play on his high school team, or is it too dangerous to his opponents?
• Should the schools honor their commitment to play - or are the parents right in not wanting their sons to get seriously injured against a team that is able to recruit such big players from a greater distance? What about the other Catholic school? They can recruit too but they played and lost 59-0, obviously they didn’t have the same type of players?
• Are they afraid or is it an injury issue?
• Should you risk serious injury over a game?
• Should you walk away from a commitment?
• Granite Falls Coach Dennis said, “They have 300-pound linemen. And we have sophomores that are weight 210, 220 pounds and starting on varsity. So that's the issue, is the size disparity.” What should be done about this?