Two Milwaukee Public Schools football programs forfeit wins, are banned from playoffs over clerical error

Posted by author October 14, 2024 Football

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The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletics Association has informed two Milwaukee City Conference football teams that they will forfeit all 2024 games and have a two-year playoff ban imposed upon them over a conference switch without filing the proper paperwork.

Milwaukee Bay View and Milwaukee Pulaski received letters Monday morning from the WIAA that detailed the punishments for each school, which Bay View athletic director Jay Wojcinski said was in response to a clerical error by city-wide interscholastic athletics commissioner Bobbie Kelsey.

“She didn’t fill out the paperwork with (the WIAA), so it was never approved for us to move over and Pulaski to move over,” Wojcinski said.

Bay View football has competed in the Milwaukee City Conference’s Blackbourn Division this fall after competing last year in the Richardson Division. The program was swapped with Pulaski, which moved from the Blackbourn to the Richardson. Moves of that nature have been commonplace over the years for City Conference programs, which the WIAA has approved as long as paperwork bearing the signatures of all 14 City Conference athletic directors is submitted. Wojcinski described the online application process as a simple form with a “fast track” option for such moves between divisions of a conference. He placed blame for the incident on Kelsey.

“She tells all of us in AD meetings, when we get things from the WIAA, ‘You guys, don’t fill this out.’ Or when the WIAA sends like group emails to athletic directors and asks us, ‘Hey, we need this done,’ she tells us in either an email or in person, ‘Do not do this stuff. I’m doing this,’ ” Wojcinski said.

Wojcinski said he had made outreaches to the WIAA on Monday to appeal before WIAA playoff brackets are released this weekend. Bay View entered the week with a 3-3 record in Blackbourn play prior to the announced forfeits, one win from automatic WIAA playoff qualification. The Redcats were scheduled to face Milwaukee Vincent on the road on Thursday in their final conference game. Even with a loss, and if wins were not forfeited, Bay View would remain on the bubble for potential playoff qualification with three wins.

As Bay View waits for a possible appeal, Wojcinski said the Redcats plan to play Thursday.

“We’re not just going to sit back and say, ‘Well, whatever.’ We haven’t made the playoffs for eight years, so it’s kind of a big deal for the kids,” Wojcinski said.

In addition to the forfeits for 2024 and the postseason ban, Wojcinski said, Bay View and Pulaski will be returned to their previous conference league homes next season. Pulaski split the Blackbourn title with Milwaukee Washington last year, while Bay View went 1-6 in Richardson play to bring up the rear of the conference.

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Media relations director Todd Clark said the WIAA would not comment specifically on the punishments facing Pulaski and Bay View, offering the following statement:

“The executive office can confirm that games played against non-approved WIAA conference opponents will result in a forfeit,” Clark said.

The Milwaukee City Conference and Pulaski’s athletic director did not respond to requests for comment on the situation.