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Juan Diego senior Zac Szymakowski wins temporary restraining order in suit against UHSAA

Juan Diego High senior Zac Szymakowski was granted a temporary restraining order in his case against the UHSAA, which means he’s eligible to play in Thursday night’s regular-season finale and any playoff games for Juan Diego.
The temporary restraining order only applies to Zac Symakowski, who is from Australia, and no other students on an F1 visa.
After a nearly four-hour evidentiary hearing Wednesday, the U.S. District Court ruled in his favor in a 38-page written order sent out Thursday afternoon.
It stated, “The court finds there is a strong likelihood that the Student Visa Eligibility Rule is unconstitutional. And because the other factors the court considers all weigh in favor of granting the TRO, the court finds that Mr. Szymakowski should be allowed to play tonight’s game without forfeiting his high school’s eligibility for postseason competition. The court therefore temporarily enjoins the enforcement of the Student Visa Eligibility Rule as it applies to Mr. Szymakowski and the remainder of his 2024 football season.”
The UHSAA implemented the new F1 student visa rule beginning with the 2024-25 school year, which states that players on that type of visa are not eligible to play in varsity games if their teams want to be eligible for postseason play.
As a result, Szymakowski has only played in junior varsity games this year.
Szymakowski brought a suit against the UHSAA challenging the new rule, which included a temporary restraining order hearing.
His lawyers asserted that the rule violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and asked the court for the preliminary injunction.

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