January 16, 2026
Street View/Google Maps
Cheltenham High School's 2026 football season is in doubt following an investigation of hazing allegations. An external investigator recommends overhauling the program with a new coaching staff after finding a Sept. 3 assault occurred in the lock room in front of 19 witnesses that took no action to stop it.
Months after reports of hazing led Cheltenham High School to suspend its varsity football season, an investigation spurred by the Cheltenham School District has concluded the team had a "toxic and negative culture" that may jeopardize hope for a 2026 season.
The external investigator hired by the district confirmed that a student-on-student assault took place in a Cheltenham High locker room on Sept. 3. Details about the assault were not disclosed, but the probe found 19 students witnessed the incident and none of them made an attempt to stop it.
MORE: Alleged gambling scheme to fix NCAA basketball games included La Salle contest
"Several participated freely in it. Several students also filmed the assault," Cheltenham School District Superintendent Brian W. Scriven wrote in a message to the school community Thursday night.
When the hazing allegations were reported to the school last fall, Cheltenham canceled the final two games of its season and rescheduled the school's annual Senior Night.
Scriven said the Cheltenham Police Department and Montgomery County District Attorney's Office are still investigating the assault, which has not led to any charges at this time.
The external investigation found the football team's coaching staff failed to supervise the locker room or prioritize student safety, Scriven said. Coaches also failed to speak with students about anti-bullying and hazing, the investigation found.
Despite the findings on the reported assault, Scriven said the investigation "did not ... fully substantiate a pattern of hazing."
The district was given several recommendations to overhaul its football program. They include replacing the coaching staff, establishing new protocols for incident reporting and creating new training materials for student conduct.
Cheltenham's head coach last season was Terence Tolbert, a business education teacher at the high school and former semi-pro football player in private Pennsylvania leagues. Tolbert previously coached at rival Abington High School, where he was head coach in 2023. Before that, he spent a decade at Abington as a junior varsity head coach and quarterbacks coach from 1999 to 2009.
Scriven said this year's football season will depend on the high school's progress reforming the program over the coming months.
"Having a 2026 season is largely contingent on identifying, hiring, and onboarding the right coaching staff, and on the cooperation of parents/guardians, students, and staff in doing their part to address the recommendations that will strengthen our program," Scriven said.
In addition to the district's external probe, ongoing Title IX and disciplinary investigations tied to students on last year's team could affect some players' future eligibility to play football. Scriven said the school will do its best to support returning students who were not involved in the September incident.
"Those students who were not involved in this situation are especially important to rebuilding the culture of our program," Scriven said.
