A Simi Valley high school football coach lost his job this week after a disturbing video showed him kicking a football directly into a student-athlete’s groin during a team practice.
The Simi Valley Unified School District dismissed Adam Brubaker as head coach of Royal High School’s football team just hours before the Highlanders were set to open their season Friday night.
The decision came after district officials reviewed footage captured by a campus security camera that showed Brubaker approaching a player and suddenly kicking a ball, striking the teen and sending him to the ground in pain.
What the Video Shows
According to reporting from KABC, the footage appears to show Brubaker visibly frustrated before the kick. Other adults on the field are seen rushing over to check on the injured player afterward.
Brubaker has insisted the strike was unintentional, saying he was reacting to a player who had violently pulled a running back down during a drill, a move he says is banned in practice because of injury risk.
Brubaker told KABC he immediately regretted what happened, describing it as “a one in a million shot” and saying he approached the player afterward to apologize once practice ended.
Speaking with the Ventura County Star, Brubaker was more blunt about the fallout, simply saying he got fired and that it is what it is, according to SFGATE.
Program Moves Forward
Royal High’s principal notified football families of the coaching change in a letter Friday, confirming that assistant Cody MacArthur would step in as head coach for that night’s season opener while the district searched for an interim replacement.
The school’s staff page has already been updated, with Brubaker’s photo removed and an empty image frame now marked “Vacant” where the varsity head coach listing used to be.
Despite the turmoil surrounding the program just hours before kickoff, Royal High rallied behind interim leadership and blew out the Monroe Vikings 62-0 in their opening game, a sharp turnaround from last season’s 3-7 finish.
In its statement to families, the school said its priority now is supporting the student athletes and giving the program stability going forward, thanking the community for its patience during the transition.
Brubaker, for his part, said the past few days have taken a heavy toll on him and his family, calling it one of the hardest stretches of his life. He said he understands why the district made the decision it did, even as he maintains the incident was never intentional.
The district has not announced who will take over as permanent head coach for the remainder of the 2026 season.
