Riverside Football Player Dismissed From Team After Punching Referee

A Riverside City College football player has been dismissed from the team for knocking a referee unconscious during Saturday’s Mission Conference game between Riverside and Golden West at Orange Coast College, the school announced Sunday.

Linebacker Sam Manu, a 6-foot-1, 240-pound sophomore, punched Nick Van Lue on the chin after the 43-year-old referee had cited Manu for unsportsmanlike conduct early in the third quarter. Van Lue was unconscious for about a minute and remained on the ground for several minutes before he was assisted to the sideline.

Van Lue, a teacher and coach at Narbonne High in Harbor City, was taken to Fountain Valley Hospital for tests and X-rays before being released Saturday night. He said he passed out for about 15 minutes at the hospital.

“I’m a little sore in the jaw, but other than that I’m just fine,” Van Lue said Sunday. He said doctors told him he had suffered a mild concussion.

Saturday’s incident occurred after the third play of the third quarter in Golden West’s 22-13 victory. Van Lue said after the tackle on a Golden West running back, Manu took an open-handed swing at a Golden West player.

“As soon as I pulled my flag, he looked at me in the eyes and unloaded,” Van Lue said. “It felt like my head exploded. I don’t remember hitting the ground. I think I was (unconscious) before then.”

Van Lue said he was uncertain whether he would file criminal charges against Manu, a former Carson High standout.