A FIRST AMENDMENT PUBLICATION @roundupnews
Vol. 145, Issue 1
Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026
Game over for those who came to play
Students scramble after the Pierce football program was placed on hiatus By Zamourad Iqbal, Calvin Henry Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor
Pierce College announced on Aug. 6, 2026, that it will place its football program on hiatus for the 2026 fall semester because of a low roster count and safety concerns for student-athletes. Before making a final decision, Pierce President Ara Aguiar said that she consulted officials across campuses, including the Southern California Football Association (SCFA) commissioner, who told her that a low roster count can increase players' injury risk. “I told the commissioner I was not going to move forward and that I was going to take a year to look at ourselves and see what we needed to do,” Aguiar said. The current “form one” roster – a special document sent to the SCFA for eligibility to participate – did not meet the minimum recommendation of 60 students, according to Aguiar. Pierce College had 50 students participating in its football program, but the number shrunk to 41 students days before the roster needed to be submitted. Aguiar said that she met with the athletics director, vice president of student services, and the coaches to inform
Calvin Henry / Roundup News Shepard Stadium at Pierce College in Woodland Hills, Calif., on August 12, the football team about the hiatus before making a public statement. “I know that they were very disappointed, and rightly so,” Aguiar said. Aguiar said she had conversations with head football coach James Sims to express her concerns about the roster size in the past. But, according to Sims, low roster sizes were not an issue in previous years. “In 2022, our numbers were
NEWS
real low, and there was never any issue,” Sims said. “There was nobody lurking around asking what our numbers were, saying that they were fearful for the athletes' health.” Sims said that, despite only 41 students being on the roster when the program shut down, the team would have reached the required minimum. “You can call any other coach in JUCO football, and they'll tell you once your season
begins and you start your fall practices, you start having players show up,” Sims said. “You'll get 10 to 15 players to join the team during that time frame from the first day of practice until the first game.” With the hiatus now in effect, Sims worries about his players’ futures. “I'm concerned about these kids; their lives are basically just uprooted with no warning,” Sims said. “It was like getting hit by a massive
HVAC issues spark discussion
Page 8
Page 6 Josue Aguilar / Roundup News
Club Rush returns
See ‘Football hiatus’ on page 4.
SPORTS
PHOTO ESSAY
Page 5
category five hurricane where it just comes in and wipes you out, and you don't know where you're gonna live or how you're gonna eat.” Sims said that his players were distraught and mentally hurt by the hiatus. “Some of these players had leases for 12 months in
Gerardo Escobar / Roundup News
Men’s soccer loses to Los Angeles City Gerardo Escobar / Roundup News College