Choctaw Home Game Moved To Westmoore Following Deadly Shooting

Two weeks after the shooting at Choctaw High School players were supposed to be back on the field playing Westmoore this Friday. But Westmoore asked for a change in date and venue, and hasn’t given News 9 a reason why.

Choctaw parents, teachers and students are upset over the sudden switch, as they’re working to get back to normal following the deadly shooting.

Related: Choctaw Shooting: Timeline Of Events

“Let's get on with business as usual,” said Aaron McConnell, Choctaw High School’s Touchdown Club President. “We missed last week's game, and we have a game coming up this week, so I think kids are just ready to get back out on the field.”

While students in Choctaw are ready to get back on the field, other districts are more apprehensive. 

“You feel like it's given us a black eye, people are looking at Choctaw differently when these were not even Choctaw students, it didn't even happen on the Choctaw side,” said McConnell.

Choctaw was slated to play their homecoming game against Westmoore at home this Friday, but that game was moved to Thursday at Moore stadium.

Related: Security Updates For Athletic Events At Oklahoma Schools 

“It's just not fair for these kids. That's a home game for our seniors, that's a home game they should be able to play in front of their home crowd that they don't get now,” said McConnell.

Choctaw Superintendent David Reid told us in a statement the change in venue was not a decision made by Choctaw.

Also in a statement, Moore Public Schools said they look forward to “watching an exciting game this week between Westmoore and Choctaw high schools.”

When News 9 asked for the reason behind the change in date and venue, MPS communications director declined to comment. 

“You can't just sit back and continue to constantly be scared of that, these kids need to get back on with life,” said McConnell.

We reached out to OSSAA regarding the protocols behind changing the date and venue of a game. An OSSAA spokesperson told News 9 because this was a non-district game, they don’t have any oversight; saying it’s up to the teams to decide when and where they play.

“We're the ones that seem like we're losing out on this now, and it's just not fair to these kids,” said McConnell.

McConnell says with additional security measures in Choctaw, the players feel safe and they’re ready to get back out on their home field.

“99 percent of them understand that that's something that could have happened at Walmart, it could have happened anywhere, it just happened to happen at our stadium,” said McConnell.

Choctaw Chief Kelly Marshall told us from the beginning this was an isolated incident and there wasn’t a danger to the public.

During an interview on August 28th, Kelly said, “This isn't one person that wanted to come in and shoot up multiple people within our football stadium. This was an argument that broke out between two people that had guns and chose violence.”

Choctaw is looking at postponing their homecoming festivities to a later date, and says more details are to come. The game between Westmoore and Choctaw will be on Thursday at 7 p.m.

Full statement from MPS:

“Moore Public Schools looks forward to watching an exciting game this week between Westmoore and Choctaw High Schools. We anticipate a great performance by all athletes, fine arts programs, cheer, and Pom from the Choctaw and Westmoore communities, and we're excited to watch both teams move forward through their schedules.”