Pinnacle QB Spencer Rattler ruled ineligible for rest of season after violating school policy

Richard Obert | The Republic | azcentral.com

Phoenix Pinnacle senior Spencer Rattler, who two weeks ago became the state's first quarterback to surpass 11,000 passing yards in a high school football career, will not return to the field this season.

Mike Rattler, Spencer's father, told azcentral sports on Tuesday night that his son is ineligible for the rest of the season, including the playoffs, after violating a district code of conduct policy.

"We can't say anything more on that," said Mike Rattler in reference to what the violation entailed.

Pinnacle coach Dana Zupke would not comment on the situation. Calls and emails to school officials were not immediately returned.

Spencer Rattler, considered the top high school senior quarterback in the nation who was MVP of the Elite 11 at The Opening in Texas this summer, committed to Oklahoma before his junior season.

Mike Rattler said he and his son reached out to Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley to inform him of the situation. "There is nothing on his permanent record," Mike said. "We discussed everything with Coach Riley."

Mike Rattler also said he had Spencer address the Pinnacle team on Tuesday to apologize for his actions.

Last Thursday, when it was discovered that Spencer Rattler wouldn't be playing the next night in an ESPNU game against Scottsdale Chaparral, Rattler told azcentral sports he had a sprained MCL. He attended the Senior Night game and supported his teammates on the sideline.

"We met with the administration at the school," Mike Rattler said. "We discussed how we need to handle the situation. We were rushed for time. They advised us on what we could say and we came up with our own narrative, feeling we could get past it."

Spencer Rattler practiced with the team last Wednesday evening. But on Thursday he didn't attend the morning walkthrough, and a source told azcentral sports that Rattler wouldn't be playing.

Rattler said it was his knee. Other sources indicated there was something more.

When azcentral sports reached out to Principal Chad Lanese via email on Friday afternoon, asking if there was a violation, he directed the inquiry to Paradise Valley Unified School District spokeswoman Becky Kelbaugh.

Asked if there was a school violation, Kelbaugh responded via email: "Due to the Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA), PVSchools cannot provide any details about the student in question."

Rattler has been followed all season by a Netflix documentary film crew as one of the featured quarterbacks for the series, "QB1."

"I told him eventually you're going to have to address your team and make a statement about it," Mike Rattler said. "It's a dumb thing and it happened. He's a good kid. He's never been in trouble. He has a 3.8 GPA."

Spencer Rattler said he will continue to support his teammates as they go through the playoffs.

“I have to learn from it and move forward and put it behind me," he said. "I have to learn from my mistakes and grow from it.

"I want to focus on helping the team as much as I can. I'm there for (backup quarterback) J.D. (Johnson) and with everyone 100 percent."

Pinnacle finishes the regular season on Friday against Anthem Boulder Creek and figures to be the No. 2 seed in the 6A state playoffs, which begin next week.

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To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him at twitter.com/azc_obert.