The New Jersey Education Commissioner's decision to uphold the suspension of nine Wayne Hills High School football players from the state playoff game tomorrow has stirred much controversy in the community.

The decision, first handed down by the Board of Education before being upheld by a state judge, has shed more light on the incident that occurred in October. The nine players are accused of assaulting two rival high school football players at an off-campus party.

Investigators say that at the pep rally, students from the football team allegedly used an expletive to describe the police before one of them reportedly blew an air-horn in a teachers face, causing injury.

The community is split on the issue with the fault lines becoming clearer as the days go on. Many believe that the football players are being punished more harshly than they should. Some parents believe the alleged assault was an incident that should have been dealt with at home, since it occurred off of school grounds.

Other members of the community have brought up the fact that the players sign a code of conduct at the beginning of each season, which applies both on and off the field.

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