Brawls, pepper spray and police patrols: A high school football game turns ugly

A chaotic scene seemingly out of a riot unfolded Friday night in Henderson, Nevada, as police officers used pepper spray, patrols and crowd control to break up a high school football game that ended with the two teams coming to blows.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Basic High School was hosting Canyon Springs for its homecoming Friday when the game became heated. More than 30 penalties were called, many for unsportsmanlike conduct, and four players were ejected before the game even ended.

In the end, Canyon Springs won, 20-15. On the final play, a Canyon Springs player was tackled out of bounds on Basic’s home sideline, and a fight immediately broke out, according to the Las Vegas Sun.

For about 30 seconds, players and coaches shoved each other, threw punches and swung helmets at each other, both media outlets report. Eventually, police officers moved in and dispersed the brawl using mace. Video shows a cloud of pepper spray and multiple police officers pointing canisters at both teams as they push them back to their respective sidelines.

According to the Review-Journal, the majority of those affected were from Canyon Springs, but at least one person from Basic High School was affected. Among those hurt was the young son of Canyon Springs coach Gus McNair.

According to the Sun, more police arrived to patrol the field after the brawl was broken up and to monitor fans as they left the stadium.

The Sun reports that no arrests resulted from the fight. Henderson Police and Clark County School District, where both high schools are located, have not issued any statement.

Late Friday and early Saturday, the incident began trending nationally on Twitter.

This story was originally published September 16, 2017 at 8:11 AM with the headline "Brawls, pepper spray and police patrols: A high school football game turns ugly."