South Carolina high school football player suffered third-degree burns from practice

A parent of a South Carolina high school football player alleges his son was burned on a football field turf.

Lance Poynor, the father, said his son, Cade Poynor, returned home from a Buford High School football practice with third-degree burns. He alleged the players were told to bear crawl on the hot turf in the South Carolina weather.

The bear crawls were part of a punishment handed down by the team’s weightlifting coach, who is now suspended.

A recent story from WRAL.com detailed the situation, speaking to Poynor’s father. Below is an excerpt from the WRAL.com story.

The father said the injuries were so bad that his son Cade couldn’t play football last week.

“That day, if I remember, it was between 85 and 90 degrees,” Poynor said. “And if it’s 85 or 90 degrees outside, that turf is gonna be a lot hotter than that.”

Poynor said Cade showed the coach his injuries and asked to see a doctor.

“The coach said they weren’t going to see the medical doctor; they were going to lift weights; they were going to work the pain out of their hands,” Poynor said.

Cade eventually went to a doctor and was diagnosed with second and third-degree burns, so serious he was forced to sit out a team scrimmage last weekend.

According to Poynor, about six other players had similar injuries. He and some other parents filed a report with the Lancaster County sheriff’s office.

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“For him to go home and come in in that condition really upset me,” Poynor said. “If we can’t trust him around our kids, he really doesn’t need to be an authority figure at the school.”

A district spokesperson said the employee is on administrative leave while leaders investigate. They would not comment further.

To read the full story from WRAL.com, click here.