Taso and UIL response
Fitch explained, "TASO has a very rigorous Conflict of Interest (COI) Policy."
"Simply living within a school's attendance zone in itself is not considered a conflict. Imagine if every official living in the DISD attendance zone was excluded from officiating any DISD game," Fitch wrote.
"This would significantly dilute the pool of very qualified officials. After our inquiries, we have determined that the Line Judge has not violated any of the items in the TASO COI (Conflict of Interest) policy," Fitch noted.
University Interscholastic League Athletic Director Ray Zepeda responded to Elizalde in a separate letter.
"It would be impossible to preclude someone from officiating a game for a school simply because they live in that city or town," Zepeda said.
"For example, officials that live in the city of Dallas called four out of the five rounds of SOC's playoff contests prior to the 2023 state championship game," Zepeda noted.
"In conclusion, the game between Dallas South Oak Cliff and Port Neches-Groves was a very well played, well coached, competitive game that featured two very storied programs in Texas high school football," Zepeda said.
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