Sports · Grand Rapids
MHSAA asks the Court of Appeals to stop Tuesday’s Catholic Central playoff game, citing a home-tour video it says shows the family never fully moved
GRAND RAPIDS — The Michigan High School Athletic Association has asked the state Court of Appeals to throw out a judge’s order that put Grand Rapids Catholic Central back in the football playoffs, and its filing says a video of a home tour shows a transfer player’s family never completed the move that made him eligible.
The MHSAA filed the emergency appeal Monday, Nov. 2. “Earlier today, the MHSAA filed an emergency appeal with the Michigan Court of Appeals seeking to vacate the TRO issued on Friday and uphold the integrity of MHSAA rules and regulations,” association spokesman Geoff Kimmerly said in a statement to MLive.
As of Tuesday morning, no appeals court ruling had been reported, and Catholic Central’s Division 5 district semifinal against Comstock Park was still scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, WZZM reported.
What the video shows, according to the filing
According to court papers described by FOX 17, the MHSAA received a video on Oct. 26 showing a “potential buyer” touring the family’s home with the player’s grandfather, who was acting as the real estate agent. The filing says the video shows family photos on the walls, food in the refrigerator and clothes in the closets.
The MHSAA had cleared the player, who previously played at Comstock Park, on the understanding that the family’s home was rented to someone outside the family from July 2026 to July 2027, FOX 17 reported. The association’s rules require a “full and complete move” before a transfer can play the same sport at a new school in back-to-back seasons, a rule meant to stop athletically motivated transfers.
Catholic Central has told families its side, too. As we reported when the MHSAA first pulled the Cougars from the bracket on Oct. 29, the school said the association had found an earlier complaint unsupported and confirmed the player’s eligibility in writing in August, and that the school held him out of its last two regular-season games once new questions surfaced in mid-October.
How the case got here
The MHSAA ruled Thursday, Oct. 29, that the Cougars used an ineligible player in six regular-season games. Forfeiting those games dropped Catholic Central from 7-2 to 2-7 and out of playoff position, the Detroit Free Press reported.
The next day, senior Noah Zainea, a different Catholic Central player, won a temporary restraining order from Kent County Circuit Judge Paul Denenfeld. As we reported, the order required the game to be played by 7 p.m. Tuesday. The school has said it is not a party to the lawsuit.
In its appeal, the MHSAA argued it “cannot wait until Friday, November 6,” when a show-cause hearing is set in circuit court, because by then it would have been forced to let a disqualified team “unfairly compete by court order against eligible student-athletes,” MLive reported, citing the Free Press. The Zainea family’s attorney told FOX 17 there was no formal comment.
The winner is scheduled to meet Berrien Springs in the district final.
Sources:
FOX 17, “Court filings: MHSAA cites video evidence in Grand Rapids Catholic Central eligibility dispute” (Nov. 3, 2026; video, rental understanding, attorney response), https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/grand-rapids/court-filings-mhsaa-cites-video-evidence-in-grand-rapids-catholic-central-eligibility-dispute
MLive, “MHSAA appeals judge’s decision to reinstate GR Catholic Central to football playoffs” (Nov. 2, 2026; Kimmerly statement, appeal language, Nov. 6 hearing), https://www.mlive.com/highschoolsports/2026/11/mhsaa-appeals-judges-decision-to-reinstate-gr-catholic-central-to-football-playoffs.html
Detroit Free Press, “MHSAA appeals TRO reinstating Grand Rapids Catholic Central football” (Nov. 2, 2026; 7-2 to 2-7, TRO terms), https://www.freep.com/story/sports/high-school/2026/11/02/grand-rapids-catholic-central-football-tro-appealed-by-mhsaa/92569910007/
WZZM 13, “MHSAA files emergency appeal over Catholic Central playoff reinstatement” (Nov. 2, 2026; 7 p.m. Tuesday game), https://www.wzzm13.com/article/sports/high-school/hs-football/mhsaa-files-emergency-appeal-over-catholic-central-playoff-reinstatement/69-e67d9a66-d82b-4610-8e0b-374e609bc35a
Photo: WMrapids, “Kent County, Michigan Courthouse,” Wikimedia Commons (CC0), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kent_County,_Michigan_Courthouse.jpg
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