Santa Ana High School principal, Jeff Bishop, said that his school's football team and its students were the front and center of provocative and racially insensitive signs when they played at Aliso Niguel High School on Friday night.
Bishop posted on Facebook that he saw posters on Aliso Niguel's on-campus stadium referencing "Build the Wall" and other offensive comments.
"Build the Wall" has been taken to be anti-Hispanic by many who object to President Trump's aggressive promise for a wall to be built on the United States-Mexico border.
Santa Ana's student body is predominantly Hispanic, while Aliso Niguel's is predominantly white.
After his team suffered a loss to Aliso Niguel that night, Bishop posted on Facebook praises of the Santa Ana team and coaches for how they handled the situation.
Yet, he was still concerned about that night.
"Up on the bleachers, way up on the walls in the corners of the bleachers," Bishop said, "there was something about Trump. That alone made me think, 'What is this? A football game or political rally?' "
The Aliso Niguel principal, Deni Christensen, said she saw two signs, which her assistant principal removed.
"One said 'Bring back Obama' and one said, 'We're going to Trump you.' "
A "Trump 2020" sign was also removed.
She found no signs of "Build the Wall" or other politically motivated signs in or around their stadium.
Aliso Niguel designated Friday's game as a "Red, White, and Blue" theme for the students. Christensen said it was to commemorate the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
When Aliso Niguel scored their first touchdown, "U.S.A." chants erupted from their student section.
Bishop was also very distraught at this.
"They're chanting 'U.S.A.' like it's a game against another country, like it's Germany or against Mexico," he said.
At halftime during Friday's game, the two principals met up.
Bishop explained he didn't understand what was the reasoning for "the U.S.A. pride thing" when they scored. Christensen made it apparent that the game wasn't meant for any political agendas.
Bishop plans to attend the next Capistrano Unified School District board meeting to express his thoughts and feelings regarding the matter.
Friday night's game was one of the two games the schools plan on playing each other.
Santa Ana will be at home for the next one. We'll see what happens.