Ringling football players sue school, saying officials failed to stop coach's abuse

Nine current and former Ringling High School students sued their southern Oklahoma school district Wednesday, alleging school officials failed to protect them from abuse and bullying by their hall of fame football coach Phil Koons.

The student-athletes, some of whom have graduated, contend school officials hired Koons despite knowing about past complaints and didn't intervene to stop reported abuse after Koons arrived at Ringling in 2018.

Koons is named as an individual defendant in the federal lawsuit, along with his adult sons, Sterling and Cooper, who also coached on the team. The final named defendant is Kent Southward, the superintendent of the rural school district, which is located on a single campus on the north edge of town. The former players are seeking at least $75,000 in damages, plus attorneys fees.

An attorney for Phil Koons did not immediately return a message left for comment, but told The Oklahoman last week that Koons denies players' claims of mistreatment. Southward and the school's attorney also have yet to respond to messages regarding the case.

Former Ringling High coach Phil Koons pleaded no contest to misdemeanor

The lawsuit lands one week after Phil Koons pleaded no contest to repeatedly shouting profanities at players, a misdemeanor charge that carries a maximum of one year in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced in March.

Several players reported to police in January 2023 that Koons had harassed, bullied and intimidated them, prompting a criminal investigation and his eventual exit from the football team. Koons' son, Tanner Koons, who is not named in the lawsuit, took over the program.

More: Teacher who supported Ringling football whistleblowers let go

The lawsuit contends Ringling fostered a dangerous environment where Phil Koons was left unsupervised and boys were afraid to speak up, "making it difficult for the school or anyone else to know how many more victims" exist. The filing claims the district did not have policies in place to protect the boys and failed to properly act after reports of inappropriate behavior surfaced.

The plaintiffs allege school officials violated their constitutional rights to due process and equal protection and ran afoul of Title IX laws that protect students from discrimination on the basis of sex.

"The abuse, harassment and/or discrimination suffered by plaintiffs was so severe, pervasive and objectively offensive," the lawsuit contends, "that it deprived each of them of access to the educational benefits or opportunities provided by the school."

The lawsuit was filed in Oklahoma City federal court by civil rights attorneys Cameron Spradling and Tod Mercer on behalf of nine teenage boys who played for the Ringling Blue Devils. Three of the plaintiffs are listed only by their initials because they are minors.

Former Ringling High football players described atmosphere of pressure to win

The Blue Devils rarely lost under Koons and won the 2019 Class A championship. But players told The Oklahoman last year the pressure to win created an atmosphere that left Koons unchecked. They said he routinely used homophobic, sexist and racist slurs and encouraged boys to bully their teammates. They also said he would routinely punish them by requiring them to complete exercise drills, including once while they were undressed in the locker room.

In victim impact statements read during Koons' court hearing last week, some players described thoughts of suicide and panic attacks because of what they endured, including the public backlash they faced in their small town after reporting Koons' actions to police.

Koons' teaching licenses appear to be active, but he has been on leave from his jobs as football coach and high school principal since he was charged in September, his attorney said.

The case is the second in recent months to allege school officials failed to protect players from harm by prominent football coaches. Kingfisher agreed to pay $5 million to settle a lawsuit claiming the school allowed hazing and bullying within its football program overseen by head coach Jeff Myers.

Editor's note: This is a developing story and will be updated.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Former Ringling High School football players sue school over abuse