The Night Frederick Fans Faced A Referee’s Unexpected Ejection

Over the weekend, Frederick residents who weren't at the high school basketball games Thursday night were asking, "What happened at the game?" And it wasn't because the home team had a big win or buzzer-beating shot against Mangum. It was because word spread that a referee ejected all of the Frederick fans out of their hometown gym.

Having being from Frederick, I saw several posts over the weekend on social media about the incident. I also had chats with my parents and friends from high school about the fan section ejection. And from those I talked with, we all concluded that we had never seen such a thing happen at Frederick or during an away game.

Sure, we've seen singular fans or players get ejected due to unsportsmanlike conduct, but never an entire section of fans.

The referee ejected Frederick fans at the end of the fourth quarter.

Luckily, for those who weren't there, Mangum Public Schools has the entire boys game against Frederick available on YouTube. The game took place on Jan. 29 at the Frederick High School gymnasium.

At the two hour and 30 minute mark, the boys game is nearing the end of the fourth quarter with Mangum leading with 39 points and Frederick trailing at 22 points.

The video pans to a group of older men standing at the top of the bleachers on the Frederick side. The commentator from KHIM 97.7 FM states, "let me show you these Bomber guys barking," chuckles and says, "faithful, loyal and true Bomber fans here."

Then a Mangum player is fouled by Frederick and they set up for a free throw. Before the shot is thrown, the referee blows the whistle and points at a Frederick fan, gestures to Frederick administrators and ejects the fan from the game. The fan throws their hands up, points their finger at the referee and yells, "You suck." This receives a round of applause from the Frederick fans.

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The referee then marches over to Frederick administrators, and after a minute or so, Frederick High School principal, Randy Biggs, announces on the microphone that the officials had asked "for this whole side to clear" and waves a hand over the Frederick crowd.

Boos from the Frederick fans ensued as the crowd began to make its way out of the gym. The commentator said they had never seen this in their 40 years of broadcasting. The game concluded with a homecourt loss and empty bleachers.

Why did the referee kick out all of the Frederick fans?

As of Monday, Feb. 2, there has been no official reasoning for the fan section ejection released from the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association (OSSAA) or Frederick High School/Public Schools. However, people who were at the game have been offering their own insights on social media.

Cameron Dole from KHIM 97.7 FM was at the game on Jan. 29 and posted to their official Facebook page about the fan section ejection, stating that they had never seen something like that happen.

One commenter who was at the game stated that it had been a rowdy evening during both the girls and boys games. They also stated that after a Frederick fan was ejected and received applause for their "you suck" comment to the referee, that's when the referee decided to eject the entire section. The commenter also said they heard that the referee later apologized and said they shouldn't have ejected the entire section, but this information as has not been confirmed by official sources.

Frederick fans reportedly apologized to Mangum basketball team.

In an article from KSWO, the assistant coach for the Mangum boys basketball team stated that Frederick fans were apologizing to players on the bench as they exited the gym.

Can high school referees eject entire sections of fans in Oklahoma?

Like the commentator and many people online stated, a referee ejecting an entire section of fans has never been seen before, at least not in southwest Oklahoma. It also has people questioning whether or not referees do, or should have, that much power during high school sports.

OSSAA has its rules for schools, athletes and fans listed on its official website, and what types of unsportsmanlike conduct is unacceptable. But it has limited information on what steps referees should go through when dealing with unsportsmanlike conduct from fans.

What do you think about the fan section ejection that occurred in Frederick? Let us know by messaging us in our official station app.

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