Mesa Desert Ridge football is in turmoil after the starting quarterback was dismissed from the team and 12 of his teammates were subsequently suspended for supporting him by walking out of a meeting last week. Five of those players are seniors.
Desert Ridge (2-5) lost at home to Mesa Red Mountain 49-7 on Oct. 9. The Jaguars are scheduled to host Corona del Sol in a 6A matchup on Thursday, Oct. 15.
Marie Brewer said that her son, quarterback Gunner Brewer, was removed from the team by coach Miles Smith on Oct. 5 for changing a play on his own during the team's 14-12 win at Vail Cienega on Oct. 2. She said the former offensive coordinator, who was let go after a 56-20 loss to Mesa Westwood on Sept. 25, had allowed her son to call audibles if he saw
something on the defense that warranted a change.
Marie Brewer said the coach was upset with him and told him they would need to talk, but it didn't come up until a Monday meeting.
"He said, 'Hey, I felt like you disrespected me, and I can't have that on my team. You're off. Get your stuff and go,' " Marie told The Republic. "He never had a disciplinary issue at all. He didn't get a chance to ask about it."
The Republic reached out to Desert Ridge coach Miles Smith and athletic director Kevin Swann for comment, but they had not returned messages as of early Tuesday, Oct. 13. The Republic also sent a message to Gilbert Public Schools athletic director Stephen McDowell but had not heard back. Desert Ridge is located in east Mesa, but part of the Gilbert district.
Smith met with players to discuss the situation on Oct. 7, according to Kristie Stark, a former booster member whose son, Will Stark, was an offensive lineman on the team and among the 12 suspended players. She said she and her son met Swann and Miles on Monday, Oct. 12, and they told them Will was no longer part of the team.
Stark said Swann left a voice message with a parent saying that 12 players would be suspended for the rest of the season. She added that her son asked for those who supported Brewer's return to raise their hand in the meeting. A large group did so. She said that an assistant coach said the decision was final and if they didn't like it, they could leave. That's when they walked out, she said.
The boys weren't planning on quitting the team, she said, but were taking a stand for their quarterback.
"The explanation is that my son quit when he walked out of the meeting, and they can't have that behavior in their program," Stark said, summarizing the reasoning she was given. "I said, 'You lost control of your meeting. It was highly emotional.' "
The Republic obtained a copy of a letter Swann sent to the Desert Ridge football parents, addressing the group's concerns about Brewer's dismissal and the subsequent suspension of 12 teammates.
Swann said in the letter that he talked to several players and coaches after practice to get their input regarding the meeting.
"The team had their normal daily meeting before breaking into offensive and defensive groups," the letter reads. "At that point, a player approached Coach Miles to advocate for one of his teammates who had been removed from the team. Coach then brought everyone back as a whole group and then gave the boys who wanted to speak the opportunity to share their thoughts.
"During this, a player asked the team to raise their hands if they wanted the removed player back on the team. A large number of players raised their hand. A coach then asked everyone to raise their hand if they felt the removed player had been treated fairly, and, again, a large number of players raised their hand. After further discussion, Coach Miles stated that he was going to stick to his principles of accountability and responsibility.
"When the meeting was adjourned, the team was instructed to go to their offensive and defensive meetings. A group of boys chose to leave practice,'' the letter says.
Swann said in the letter the practice continued.
"When specifically asked, each player and coach I talked to gave the same answer to these questions," Swann wrote in the letter.
"Did Coach raise his voice - no.
"Was Coach disrespectful - no.
"Did Coach call players stupid - no.
"Did Coach tell players, 'We don't care what you think' - no
"Did Coach tell the boys to leave practice - no.
"I asked these questions specifically because these are the rumors that were shared with me regarding things that were said in the meeting," Swann wrote. "Again, these are the consistent answers/findings that were shared with me when I interviewed players and coaches and this message is intended to bring some clarification to what happened yesterday (the day of the meeting)."
Stark, a parent volunteer, said she has lined up a meeting with the school principal on Oct. 13.
"I think the key point in the Gunner story is that a student-athlete was removed from the team and the family had no idea it was coming," she said. "There was no family meeting. There was no progressive discipline if it was behaviors. My expectation as a family is if my student-athlete is in trouble, that I have the opportunity to help intervene. And there wasn't."
Richard Obert has been covering high school sports since the 1980s for The Arizona Republic. Catch the best high school sports coverage in the state. Sign up for Azcentral Preps Now. And be sure to subscribe to our daily sports newsletters so you don't miss a thing. To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Desert Ridge football turmoil as QB dismissed, 12 players suspended
