Southlake Carroll Assistant Football Coach Accused of Using Racial Slur During Game

The UIL is investigating reports that a Southlake Carroll assistant football coach used a racial slur against a player from DeSoto during a playoff game Friday night.

DeSoto's athletic director told NBC 5 on Monday the team is staying focused on football and preparing for their next game and that should be the case for every student who plays.

But a parent NBC 5 spoke to near campus said the playing field isn't always equal.

"It's not surprising,” said parent Ekiko Garlon. “A lot of stuff that seems like on the surface everything was getting better, it's coming up."

Carroll ISD Spokesperson Julie Thannum released the following statement:

“We take this accusation seriously and are conducting our investigation. That investigation is ongoing at this time. We have reached out to DeSoto Administration and to the UIL. To date, we still have not received anything at this point to confirm the allegation.”

She added that, so far, the district hasn't received any formal information or complaint from DeSoto and “have no information that it was said to players.”

Aubrey Hooper, Vice President of the DeSoto ISD School Board, released his own statement:

"The young men of both football teams played an incredible game of football on Friday night. It is unfortunate that an assistant coach on the Southlake Carroll coaching staff decided to trump the activities on the field and created a distraction laced with a racial epithet that was not only disrespectful to the members of the DeSoto Eagles football team, but also to the hard work and effort of the Southlake Carroll Dragons. I applaud our students and coaching staff for their discipline and class in dealing with adversity and their ability to stay focused on their mission. The DeSoto ISD Administration will be sending correspondence to both UIL and the Southlake Carroll Superintendent asking that the matter be fully investigated and that the appropriate accountability measures be taken."

Whatever the investigation shows, Garlon said this is a time to stop and listen to each other.

"It's not surprising but how do we react to it? We react out of love. Show that person love. Love is not threatening," said Garlon. “There’s no progress in anger. There’s no progress in 'I’m just going to take my kids and shelter them.' It’s time to open up our mouth and have open dialogue about this situation, so we can understand, on both sides.”

The DeSoto athletic director also said he was happy with the ongoing investigation and focused on winning the next game.

DeSoto beat Southlake Carroll on Friday to advance to the next round of playoffs.