Eleven students at Gaffney High School have been recommended for expulsion in the wake of a Tuesday morning brawl.

The Gaffney Police Department arrested four of the high school students on the charge of disturbing school, while seven juveniles were released to their parents. The juveniles will be referred to the Department of Juvenile Justice and summoned before the Family Court at a later date.

Gaffney High School Principal Marlene Davis said she has recommended all 11 students for expulsion and that all were suspended for 10 days pending a hearing before the district's hearing officer.

"This was so serious and so many innocent people could have been hurt, I'm looking at it as disturbing school," Davis said.

The brawl started in the school cafeteria at about 8:10 a.m. just as the students were arriving for the start of the school day. Davis said the fight spilled out into the commons area of the high school and then into a hallway.

Asked what started the fight, Davis said it apparently was a continuation of something that happened outside of school.

Gaffney Police Chief Rick Turner said his officers have received "different stories from different people" about what started the fight.

One of those explanations was that two of the students had been arguing back and forth over the summer and when they started fighting Tuesday morning, a few of their friends jumped in, the chief said.

The school resource officers still are investigating and are reviewing security camera videos to see who actually started it, Turner said.

Davis said she did not receive any reports of serious injuries.

According to a Gaffney Police Department report, officers arrived after the fight was broken up. Officers used security camera footage to take the 11 students into custody.

Arrest warrants were issued against four of the adult students on the charge of disturbing school. They included: Chandler Jarel Petty, 17, of Brookshire Drive; John Freeman McGill Jr., 17, of Brittany Road; Larry Joe Austin, 17, of Oxford Street; and Zsazhamar Jericho Davis, 17, of North Limestone Street.

Zsazhamar Davis is a senior linebacker on the Gaffney High Indians football team.

The seven juveniles involved in the incident were all males ranging from 15 to 16 years old.

"We had a player suspended due to his involvement in the incident," Gaffney head football coach Phil Strickland confirmed without naming the player. "From reports I've been told he was actually trying to stop the fight and got caught up in what was going on."

Strickland said he will wait until after an investigation into the incident has been completed before considering further disciplinary measures.

"He definitely won't play this week," the coach said. "We'll wait to see what an investigation uncovers and a decision whether he'll be suspended or expelled before he will be able to come back to the football team."

(Joe Hughes II contributed to this report)