Pell City superintendent James Martin has called the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s decision to declare one of its student-athletes ineligible a “grievous error.”

The AHSAA announced Saturday morning that the Panthers would have to forfeit their only win of the season over Center Point for a violation of the AHSAA transfer rule.

Controversial coach Rush Propst is in his first year at Pell City.

In a press release Monday, Martin said the decision was just “plain wrong.” He also termed it “arbitrary and capricious” and vowed to fight the ruling through the appeal process.

Martin said the rule in question in this case states that if a student has been declared a ‘dependent of the state’ and placed by the Department of Human Resources,’ that student would meet the transfer rule requirement in the school zone he has been placed.

“We believe our student-athlete meets the spirit of that rule,” he said.

In Martin’s release, he said the student-athlete in question has a custody order whereby a juvenile judge found that athlete to be dependent as far back as 2018 and as recent as 2023. He said custody was not awarded to DHR as a viable family resource (an aunt and uncle, in this case) was available.

Martin’s statement read in part:

“Although the Pell City School System desires to be compliant with the AHSAA’s rules, we also must demand that those rules be applied fairly and equitably. By requiring that a student-athlete’s only option to make a bonafide move is to be ordered into DHR care when a viable family resource is available seems not only short sighted but also inconsistent with the spirit of doing what is best for our children.”

This post will be updated