Hudson coach Mark Nash was suspended for one game Tuesday for comments he made after Friday's 42-19 loss to Wesley Chapel.
Nash will miss Friday's game against Lecanto. His suspension stems from an outburst in which he screamed at Wesley Chapel coach John Castelamare, "You've got a bunch of thugs, Coach," during the postgame handshake.
"That's the most classless team I've ever played against in my entire life," Nash later told reporters.
The punishment came from the school's principal, Angie Stone, who met with athletic director Linda McQuade and Nash on Monday.
Stone also reviewed a tape of the game and talked to members of the staff.
"You get different sides to every story, but it seemed that Coach Nash was the only one who was mad after the game," Stone said. "That's not the kind of behavior we want from our coaches.
"He has to be held accountable for what we viewed as unsportsmanlike conduct and suffer the same consequences his players would be subjected to if they violated the rules."
Nash will be allowed to conduct practice this week and can attend Friday's game. But he cannot coach from the sideline or in the press box.
"I had a feeling I was going to be disciplined," Nash said. "It was unfortunate what happened, but I have no one to blame but myself. I was heated and took it out on the wrong people."
Last week's game was an important Class 3A, District 9 contest that had playoff implications. The intensity showed as both teams pointed fingers and combined for 14 penalties for almost 200 yards. "There were calls that could have gone either way, and I let those get the best of me," Nash said.
The game ended with Nash allowing Matt Edelman to attempt a 58-yard field goal to set a school record. The kick fell short and was picked up by Wesley Chapel's Mario Melvin, who attempted to return the missed kick for a touchdown before being forced out of bounds at midfield.
Afterward, players from both sides had to be separated and Nash showed his frustration.
Two days later, Nash backed off his comments and said he wrote a letter of apology to Castelamare and the school.
"It's a lesson learned," Nash said. "I have to play by the rules just like my players."
Castelamare, whose team has won 14 consecutive regular-season games, said he did not take offense to Nash's comments.
"I can relate," said Castelamare, who previously coached at Ridgewood and went 40-80. "They came on the losing end. That's going to happen. It was an important game that both teams wanted to win badly. (Nash) just needs to learn to take those kind of losses."
