Sometimes you can take competition too far. The football team at Braden River High School in Bradenton, Fla., has found that out the hard way and they’re in a lot of trouble. They were discovered accessing the training videos of four of their local rival teams. While it occurred during last year’s season, an investigation has been underway since this past May and the results were just announced.
The investigation found that the football team’s coaches hacked into the HUDL online service. The service is used widely by Florida high schools to upload and save the videos taken during team practices.
The investigators said Braden River coaches were able to view videos from the Venice, North Port, Sarasota, and Sarasota Booker high school teams, all of whom they faced during last year’s season.
“Although I am troubled by the use of Sarasota County high school HUDL accounts to obtain information regarding our football programs by the Braden River High School coaching staff, I am glad to see the leadership at the Manatee County School District act,” Sarasota County School superintendent Todd Bowden said in a press release.
“As soon as our athletic director alerted me to the allegations of improper use, we immediately looked into this, and I am glad the investigation is over and our high school accounts are no longer compromised by other schools. With football season upon us, I am hopeful we can all move forward and enjoy healthy competition throughout our district and region,” he said.
A coach on one of the opposing teams suspects that Braden could have accessed videos that detailed the first 20 plays they plan for each game.
No punishment has been meted out yet, but it’s not the first fumble for the Bradenton team. They were fined $40,000 earlier this year for holding illegal practices during the spring season. That fine was reduced to $1600 because the infraction was “self-reported.”
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