Support our high school sports coverage by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribe now
Read more Inside the viral video of the burglar and the San Diego dog who just wanted to play
An Orange County Superior Court judge has denied a legal bid by Orange Lutheran’s Austin Attalah to play varsity football this season at the Trinity League school, an attorney for the player stated Friday.
Judge Nathan Vu denied a request for a temporary restraining order against a CIF Southern Section decision that restricts the player from varsity football competition this fall, attorney Michael Caspino confirmed.
On Sept. 2, the section ruled Attalah as a student with “limited eligibility” following his transfer from Cajon in the offseason.
That ruling allows Attalah to only play football at the junior varsity level or lower this school year at Orange Lutheran.
Attalah (6-7, 305) is a junior offensive tackle who is committed to Texas Tech and rated as the top Class of 2028 offensive lineman in the state.
He has not played this season, according to court records.
Orange Lutheran (3-1) plays at Sierra Canyon (3-0) on Friday in a clash of highly-ranked teams in the state.
Attalah has appealed the section’s “limited eligibility” ruling to the CIF State, Caspino added.
Read more US deportees to Equatorial Guinea were arrested and beaten by police, lawyers say
When asked about the appeal, the CIF State referred the question to Attalah.
In a hearing Thursday afternoon, Vu told Caspino and CIF State and CIF-SS attorney Ronald Scholar that he was “inclined” to deny the request for the temporary restraining order based on its lack of supporting “merits.”
Vu listened to arguments from both sides and said he would issue a decision by Friday morning.
“I do understand the importance of this to both sides,” Vu said.
The court filing by the CIF stated that the CIF-SS found “several anomalies” with Attalah’s eligibility application “based on a claim of a valid change of residence.”
The concerns, according to court documents, included “issues” with a “new lease” and the lack of “established utility billing.”
Utility bills are used in the section to establish a valid change of residence.
The section shared the concerns with Orange Lutheran, according to court documents.
Caspino addressed the utility issue in the hearing.
Attalah’s transfer history was covered in the hearing. Scholar said Attalah wasn’t eligible to be a sitout transfer because Orange Lutheran was his second transfer.
Last season, Attalah observed the sitout period as a transfer to Cajon from another school, according to the CIF-SS transfer database.
Read more Trump to announce all 50 states joining Medicaid drug pricing model