WATCH: Neshaminy Coach 'Head Butts' Ref, Gets Thrown From Game

Langhorne, PA - A Neshaminy School District varsity basketball coach has been placed on administrative leave after an apparent “head butt” that knocked a referee to the ground during a game Tuesday night against Pennsbury.

A video, captured by a WBCB1490 livestream and posted to YouTube, shows head coach Jerry Devine in an altercation with a referee. He approaches the referee and then appears to head butt him, knocking him down to the ground. (The video appears below.)

Commentators in the background can be heard saying “oh my god.”

He was then ejected from the game, NBC10 reported.

Middletown Township Police Chief Joe Bartorilla said the video has prompted an investigation by law enforcement.

Chris Ermer, a WBCB1490 commentator, told CityofBasketballLove.com that Devine “caught the ref off-guard.”

Ermer said after making contact with the referee, “coach Devine almost indicated by giving a sweeping motion with his hand that he thought the ref had flopped, that he thought the contact wasn’t enough to send the man to the floor.”

Sources told the CityofBasketballLove.com that the apparent head butt happened with less than 30 seconds left in the game, when a Neshaminy player got called for a charge in an attempt to make it a three-point game.

Neshaminy School District officials said administrators will be conducting a “thorough review of the incident.” Officials declined to elaborate further on Devine’s status, other than saying he is on administrative leave and the issue is a personnel matter.

“The athletic program at Neshaminy places the values of fair play and sportsmanlike conduct above all. We expect our coaches and staff to teach and uphold those principles, while acting in a professional manner at all times,” the district said in a statement.

Devine has been a special education teacher at Neshaminy High School for 18 years, his bio says. He has coached the school’s basketball team for 10 years. He previously taught in Bristol Borough and Philadelphia.

Here is the full statement released by the Neshaminy School District:

The administration at Neshaminy School District is conducting a thorough review of an incident at the varsity basketball game Tuesday evening (January 5, 2016) involving coach Jerry Devine and a referee. Appropriate action was taken at the game following that incident, and further measures may follow depending on the outcome of that review. As this is a personnel matter, we will not be able to comment on the specifics of any possible disciplinary action until that review process is complete.

Mr. Devine has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of that review for both his teaching and coaching positions.

The athletic program at Neshaminy places the values of fair play and sportsmanlike conduct above all. We expect our coaches and staff to teach and uphold those principles, while acting in a professional manner at all times.