California high school football: Pasadena cancels varsity season over roster concerns

Pasadena (Calif.) was set to take on Monrovia (Calif.) in under three hours’ time. However, ahead of Friday Night’s fixture, it has been announced that the Bulldogs are set to forfeit the rest of their varsity season, according to reports. Pasadena is currently 0-1 to start the year, set to go winless. Coming off a winning season in 2025, with a 6-5 record, Pasadena is coming off a notable last two years. During the 2024 California high school football season, the Bulldogs won their first divisional championship since 1933, when Pasadena captured the Southern Section Division 13 championship. [ $19.99 gets you a FULL year of On3 | Rivals national coverage ] “BREAKING: Pasadena High School football ends varsity season, forfeits remaining games over concerns from coaches … The school is hoping to play its remaining games with a junior varsity-only schedule.” Southern California news reporter Fred J. Robledo shared on Friday Night. According to the report from the SGV Tribune, the decision was made to cancel the rest of the varsity season due to multiple reasons. Included in that was low enrollment, as well as concerns over player health with multiple inexperienced freshmen and sophomores going into building the roster. Out of the entire roster, one of the most notable losses was Southern Utah commit Dutch Burbridge. Transferring to Charter Oak (Calif.), the senior quarterback led Pasadena to a 6-5 record last season, throwing for 2,956 yards and 30 touchdowns. Set to forfeit the rest of the school’s games for the rest of the season, Pasadena is also set to forfeit its end-of-season clash at the Rose Bowl. During the 2025 season, the Bulldogs fell in a one-score game to local rivals Muir (Calif.) at the Rose Bowl, in a 20-28 loss. With Ron Jones taking over the program in 2023, after going 0-10 in his first season, Pasadena made school history the year after. However, they also suffered similar issues to start the 2025 season, going 0-3, with multiple seniors graduating following the Bulldogs’ Southern Section title run. Heading into the 2025 season, the Bulldogs had over eighteen freshmen and sophomores on their roster. This season, out of the 24-man roster, 15 were set to be either freshmen or sophomores. With that, school officials met with the Bulldogs’ head coach, electing to cancel the season according to the report. With its season coming to an unfortunate end following its week one loss, the only high school football that will be played at Pasadena High School this season will be junior varsity. According to MaxPreps, the J.V. squad will kick off its season on October 1st against Gabrielino (Calif.)