High School Football Coach Resigns After Player Abuse Investigation

MINERAL WELLS, TX — A high school football coach at Mineral Wells High School stepped down after an investigation by the school district found that he hit two of his football players with a wooden handle.

“Seth Hobbs stepped down as head football coach at Mineral Wells High School on April 12 after a school district investigation found he had struck the players with a broom/mop handle,” said Superintendent John Kuhn of the Mineral Wells Independent School District.

The wooden handle is attached to a Nerf football the coaches use for drills during practice with the players. According to Kuhn, the incident took place on April 6.

"Other students were present in the locker room and witnessed this incident," the school district said in a statement provided to USA TODAY Sports. "An investigation quickly determined that the students were indeed struck by Coach Hobbs with the broom handle."

Coach Hobbs declined to comment on the incident. The incident was reported to law enforcement and the Department of Family and Protective Services, which named a special investigator, according to the district office. That investigation is ongoing, the district said.

According to the district, after they removed Hobbs from his post, they offered to honor his 2-year contract in a different role, but Hobbs declined the offer and resigned effective June 30. Hobbs will be kept on administrative leave for the remainder of the school year.

Mineral Wells High School hired Hobbs as the Head Football Coach and Athletic Director in January 2021. Before that, he worked as the team’s defensive coordinator and history teacher. 

Kuhn said that a picture was circulating on social media that featured one of the students with a mark where they were struck with the handle.

"School systems are responsible for protecting students’ physical safety and their mental health and for maintaining a student-centered, professional school culture where students are treated with dignity, respect, and kindness," the district said. "To ensure these obligations are met, (the school district)  must ensure that staff members adhere to school district policies and professional best practices. This case represents a clear violation of district policy that simply cannot be minimized or ignored."