UPDATE: Video of the incident was posted to Vimeo on Sunday by user Pupsmom81. On Tuesday, the video was removed from Vimeo “as a result of a third-party notification by PlayOn Sports that claims this material is infringing on their copyright.” NFHS Network is a part of PlayOn Sports. We have posted of the video below as it falls under fair use.
We have not heard back from NFHS Network despite multiple inquiries.
They've also claimed copyright on the video which was posted by a concerned parent. With the video now off-line, we are posting it here with permission from the parent as it is clearly newsworthy. https://t.co/EC2lv2RvRO pic.twitter.com/ps2Piw8fvy
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 28, 2024
ORIGINAL: A third-place girls soccer matchup in the Kansas Class 4A-1A state championship tournament on Saturday between Rose Hill and McPherson featured a hot mic incident where players, coaches, and even parents in attendance were the target of some very inappropriate comments. The game was aired live online on the NFHS Network streaming service.
During halftime, a parent at the game captured the announcer speaking to an unidentified person in the press box. The video, which was later shared to Vimeo and forwarded to Awful Announcing, shows the announcer complaining about the play on the field in the first half, openly ripping the players and coaches involved in the game.
The video identifies the announcer as Toby Moore, who would later confirm he was the announcer caught on the hot mic with a statement he sent Awful Announcing. He is believed to be speaking to the PA announcer on site.
“Ah f***,” said Moore. “Oh, my goodness. God, was that first half as ugly as I thought it was? That game…that had no flow whatsoever. What in the h*** was that?”
The other person could be overheard encouraging Moore to call out the players on the broadcast. But he stated that doing so would be against his “policy.”
“No, college games, I might. But high school games I won’t. Actions have consequences. It is my policy. It is beneath my dignity to call out high school players. I’m gonna try and subtly do it, but I’m just gonna say, this game blows.”
Moore then joked about self-harming because, in his eyes, the performance on the field was that bad.
“My mind kind of flicked the ‘kill me now switch’ at about 30 minutes in,” said Moore. “If they are just gonna keep kicking the damn ball out of bounds and missing passes all day, I may as well just go home. I just want to do a header off the top of the press box. Unfortunately, it’s too low; it wouldn’t kill me. It’s like they aren’t even trying to pass. They are just chucking the ball downfield. A little technique will be nice. What the hell are they teaching these kids in practice? It’s unbelievable.”
The other person could then be heard alluding to the “soccer moms” in the stands being one positive about calling the games.
“A bonus though of calling high school soccer? Girls soccer? For high school? The soccer moms.”
Moore openly agreed with this sentiment, proceeding to offer some disgusting thoughts about one of the parents, in particular, who was facing the press box.
“F*** yeah, baby. Up top, baby. The one that’s facing us? See if she can tear it the f*** off. I can’t see the legs, but I can feel the a** from here,” he said.
Throughout the entire conversation, neither Moore nor the other person seemed to realize that anyone was capturing this conversation. However, Moore acknowledged that if anybody listened, they would “be in trouble.”
“This conversation never happened, by the way,” said Moore. “We’d get in trouble. I would have never had this conversation if [inaudible name] was sitting in that chair. We’ve been around long enough; we know what we’re doing.”
Moments after this comment, Moore shifted his focus back to the game at hand, saying that he had “gotten it out of his system.”
Moore has been calling games on NFHS Network since 2019, with experience calling five 5 KSHSAA soccer finals in the past. He also calls games for Tulsa Athletic Soccer and Rogers State University in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
As for Moore’s future covering KSHSAA events in the future, he will reportedly not be allowed to cover these events in the future. Awful Announcing also learned from an on-site source that Toby Moore will not be working for the local producer, 810 Varsity productions, on any future events.
“I would like to apologize to the Rose Hill and McPherson schools, players, coaches, families, and communities for my remarks last Saturday,” Moore said in a statement to Awful Announcing. “They were tasteless, stupid, and inexcusable. Those comments did not reflect the tremendous season and hard work both sides had during the year. Thank you to KSHSAA and NFHS for allowing me the privilege to call games on their network. I sincerely and deeply apologize for my tasteless and hurtful remarks and ask forgiveness from those that were hurt by my words.”
Multiple attempts to reach NFHS Network for comment have been unsuccessful.
While overshadowed by the comments on the broadcast, Rose Hill won the game 2-1 over McPherson.
