Three goals scored by the Campbell Red Devils Varsity Soccer players were dedicated to their coaches, all three of whom have been suspended.

On Monday, the Campbell School District suspended the head soccer coach Phil Atsas, which followed the earlier suspension of two assistant coaches through the end of this year's season.

 

Team members are showing support for the coaches, while some parents say the teens are better off because of Coach Atsas and the two assistant coaches who go above and beyond.

"My son he loves the sport. He loves the coaches. They are very positive. They engage with all of the students. They try to make them better. They do extra things," Gretchen Sferra said. 
 
"I talked to my nephew and he was quite upset about hearing this because he adores the coach. The other boys were also down today. He has grown the program in two years. There were barely enough players for a team, now there is a junior varsity and varsity team Coach Phil has built this team in two years," Barbara Georgiadis said. 
 
 Several parents wouldn't talk on camera but tell 21 News they want the school district to put petty politics aside and put the kids first, others did on-camera interviews.
 
"Let the kids play with the men they respect and take care of them. He worries about their grades or if they have a ride home. He is a father of his children, plus his team," Barbara Georgiadis said.
 
Dallan Patterson who was suspended as an Assistant Coach tells 21 News this would have been his third year being an assistant coach, but his CPR and First Aid certification expired, and he missed a recertification course because he was out of the country, and it takes time to find a recertification class. 
 
"We came to some scrimmages and we helped referee, we helped run a tournament we had in the summer.  We went to a parents meeting which led to us getting a ten-day suspension. We got the suspension on the 11th. We obtained our CPR recertification on August 10th. 
 
"During those ten days, they said no involvement with the team at all, which meant spectating, no coaching, no practice, no interaction with the kids at all. A lot of people didn't understand we had our CPR certifications at that point," Patterson added.  
 
"We decided we wanted to come to the game so instead of coming into the stadium and taking part in anything, we decided to stay across the street and watch the game from outside the stadium. This led to another suspension. That suspension ended up being a season," Patterson explained. 
 
"We did not mean any disrespect. We were not on the field and were not there to coach them. I and the other assistant coach are just very passionate. He's my age. We played together for the same coach. It was the home opener. The kids were very excited and we wanted to see them play," explained Patterson. 
 
He believes that's why the head coach ended up getting suspended today.
 
We reached out to the Campbell School District to ask why each coach was suspended and received the following text message:
 
 "The District respects the privacy of its personnel and does not comment on those matters publicly. We deal with these situations internally by state law and board policy as well as OHSAA bylaws if it involves interscholastic athletics," Superintendent Matthew Bowen stated.
 
The coaches want the board and Superintendent's support to let them continue the progress they are building.
 
"It may seem negative, but the situation has been a positive experience overall building the program. We became a competitive team over the last two years. A lot of kids get their referee license which teaches them life skills, and we owe that all to the head coach. He puts all of his time into it. I'm so grateful like I said he was my coach when I played. He got me into the sport and it's a passion of mine. Just sharing that with the kids is very important," Patterson said. 
 
"I do believe I was wrong for getting my CPR a little bit late, but I don't understand the punishment being as severe as it was," Patterson emphasized.
 
He believes that punishing the coaches punishes the kids more.
 
"A lot of our kids rely on us for multiple other things other than coaching, such as rides to practice. We feed the kids when we can, keep them ready and here, so they can play, Patterson said. 
 
 "Just understand through all the million good things that we have been doing that one minor mistake shouldn't be the end all. Just let us continue to do what we're doing, building this program. We have grown it beyond just a game. We have fewer players having trouble with grades. Like I said they are referees now all over Ohio which teaches life skills. They're meeting people and seeing the game at a high level. Let us continue building what we're building," Dallan Patterson emphasized.