Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
By BOB PUTNAM, JOHN SCHWARB and PETE YOUNG
© St. Petersburg Times, published August 9, 2001
St. Petersburg Catholic's football team has been placed on restrictive probation by the Florida High School Activities Association and will be ineligible for postseason play this season because of a recruiting violation.
An investigation found that a Dixie Hollins student and a Northeast student had been recruited last spring by Shannon Brooks, a non-faculty assistant coach at SPC, according to the FHSAA ruling announced this week. Brooks had served as the players' coach in the Northeast Bandits recreation league.
SPC already was on administrative probation during the 2000-2001 school year for improper contact between an assistant coach and a player, and was found to be in violation of that probation.
Under the restrictive probation, SPC must pay a $2,500 fine and may participate only in regular-season games during the 2001 football season. The school will remain on administrative probation for the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years.
SPC athletic director Joe Molloy said the school will appeal the FHSAA board of directors on Sept. 23 in Gainesville.
"We have filed an appeal of the alleged recruitment," said Molloy, who spoke with the coaching staff and team before Wednesday's practice to make them aware of the situation. "This is an isolated incident that has some interesting twists and turns to it that we hope the board of directors will see and rule in our favor. ... certain witnesses and so forth that we're allowed to bring forward might help corroborate what we feel has (occurred)."
Molloy said he was contacted by the FHSAA in late May and told of the allegations and impending investigation, and that he also conducted an investigation.
"I am satisfied that (Brooks) has responded in a truthful and honest manner to me in this matter," Molloy said.
Brooks, who joined the SPC staff in the spring, has been retained as a defensive coach.
"We feel that he is of the caliber of person we want associated with our kids," said Molloy, who would not permit Brooks, or any coaches, to speak with the media. "We have the whole trust of (head coach) Dan Mancuso and his coaching staff.
"Certainly we are very disheartened by this. We pride ourselves in our honesty and integrity in our approach to dealing with kids."
SPC is the first county football team to be placed under such a probation since the FHSAA began penalizing schools for recruiting violations in 1994.
"I'm not totally happy. I was under the impression that you're supposed to get the death penalty for something like this, and I think they got off lightly," Dixie Hollins coach Mike Morey said. "They did it two years in a row. You can't say that they weren't warned."
Morey and Northeast coach Jerry Austin initiated the investigation after hearing their players were contacted by Brooks. According to the FHSAA report, the Northeast player was invited by Brooks to attend the SPC spring game and meet the coaching staff. Brooks attended the Dixie Hollins spring game and contacted the Rebels player, saying Dixie "was not using him right and that he needed to attend St. Petersburg Catholic," according to the report.
The names of the players were not released by the FHSAA.
"I've never gone over to St. Petersburg Catholic to recruit on their field and I don't expect them to do the same," Morey said. "If that's not blatant I don't know what is."
SPC was reprimanded, fined $250 and placed on administrative probation in April 2000 for the 2000-2001 school year due to improper contact with Ronald Gibson while he attended Gibbs. Gibson attended Gibbs as a freshman in the fall of 1998, SPC in the spring of 1999 and returned to Gibbs in the fall of 1999.
In 1998, SPC also came under scrutiny when six transfers moved into starting positions. One transfer, former St. Petersburg linebacker Amos Phillips, told then-St. Petersburg coach Dusty Boylson that his Azalea youth football league coach had contacted him about playing for SPC.
Dixie Hollins three-sport athletes Derrick and Eric Jelks also transferred to SPC, and Morey said at the time he strongly believed they were recruited. SPC was not investigated by the FHSAA over those transfers.
"I would suggest that if their appeal is unsuccessful, they review their in-house procedures and how they handle their hiring practices," FHSAA Associate Commissioner for Administration Dan Boyd said.
The Florida High School Activities Association ruled that St. Petersburg Catholic violated Bylaw 7.6.1 (recruitment of students) and Policy 35 (on recruiting). The school was reprimanded and assigned the following penalties:
A $2,500 fine.
The football team is placed on restrictive probation for the 2001-2002 school year. The team only may compete during the regular season and is restricted from any FHSAA State Series competition.
The football team is placed on administrative probation for the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 school years.
The school is served notice that it is in a period of warning for three calendar years and additional violations during this period may result in the school being suspended or expelled from the FHSAA.