McKinley Football Staff Players (57) Staff (1) Antonio Hall Head Coach Are you the coach? He had planned to do some exercises with a stretch band due to his shoulder injury. Im in disbelief that Im basically accused of harming a kid when Ive done nothing but take care of kids in this community, said McLeod, a 1996 McKinley graduate who was an all-Ohio linebacker for McKinley. Gilbert said the player told the coach at least 10 times that he did not eat pork because he and his family are Hebrew Israelites, a faith thatstrictly forbids the consumption of pork or pork residue. They needed to show him what it was like to be the only man eating in a room full of hungry, working men. Every day . The story was first reported by The Repository on Wednesday as Canton City Schools Superintendent Jeffrey Talbert announced that the district had begun investigating a complaint made against the coaches, including McKinley Head Coach Marcus Wattley. This wasnt about that (a single missed workout). Its unclear whether the player told the coaches about the yardwork. Canton McKinley High School head football coach Marcus Wattley placed on administrative leave along with seven assistants Canton City Schools' administrative team received a report of an. Antonio Hall was named head coach of the McKinley High School football team on Monday. Eating pork violated the player's Hebrew Israelite faith. Rose's Tigers beat McDaniels' Bulldogs in an overtime shootout in the 100th game between the old rivals, in 1994. "I'm very excited Josh is getting another opportunity. But the player testified that Wattley told him that if he walked out, he couldnt come back. Disciplinary hearings for assistant coaches Joshua Grimsley and Zachary Sweat, both of whom are school resource assistants, are scheduled over the next week. After I got off the phone call, I thought to myself, like I cant like what they did to me was just too far extreme disrespect, so I just left it there.. "I remember sitting in the stands watching a McKinley-Masillon ninth-grade game," Rose said. I think I said, Im sorry for missing practice and I wont let it happen again or something across those lines, the player testified. The weekly sessions are now monthly check-ins. Bulldogs logo for the Canton City School District in Ohio. Assistant coach Badre ElBardawil, who also had beensuspended on May 26 with the other coaches, remains an assistant coach with McKinley because district officials said the evidence did not show that he performed in the same manner as the other coaches.. Following a due-process hearing with the Canton City School District June 8, the attorney for Canton McKinley Senior High . Reach Kelli at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com. Dude I don't coach at McKinley nor have I ever but I think you feel like you was entitled t to his job smh he was qualified to be the head coach . CANTONMarcus Wattley broke his silence Monday about the discipline of a player that led to the end of his career as McKinley High Schools head football coach. Six former Canton-McKinley High School football coaches have filed a civil lawsuit alleging district leaders and a player's father and attorney defamed them, damaged their reputations and caused . The player said McLeod didnt react and continued to eat the pizza next to him. Attorney Stephen Griffin, who represents Gilbert in the coaches defamation lawsuit, declined to respond to Pattakos online post. McKinley Senior High School Grades 9-12 2323 17th St NW, Canton, OH 44708. He always pushes the envelope forward. Notifications can be turned off anytime in the browser settings. Attorney Ed Gilbert, who is representing the 17-year-old football player and his family, said Thursday that he agrees with the school board's decision to dismiss the coaches, but added, There is no joy in seeing this. CANTON, Ohio (WOIO) - Canton City Schools held a special meeting Thursday evening that addressed a controversy involving seven McKinley High School football coaches and a student-athlete.. While two of his teammates have signed affidavits that say the coaches offered the player a nonpork option such as McDonalds or chicken, the player testified, I didnt hear nothing about no chicken nuggets.. More about Hebrew Israelites: Canton family's faith at the center of McKinley High football coach abuse allegations, I miss my boys. A roughly two-hour disciplinary hearing was held Monday with Canton City school officials about whether Wattley should retain his job as a district academic and athletic liaison. In an 11-page decision, Judge John Adams wrote there would be no ruling against the coaches "merely because it (the court) may not believe the plaintiff's factual allegations." I learned from a great man how to coach football," Wattley told media members during a Monday interview. They said previous methods of discipline had failed to reach the player. CANTON, Ohio (WJW) The Canton City School District Board of Education held a special meeting Thursday evening to discuss further discipline for a group of football coaches. All rights reserved. Wattley's attorney Peter Pattakostold The Canton Repository on Mondaythat Wattley and the assistant coaches were trying to rescue a troubled player whose off-the-field behavior was negatively influencing his teammates and jeopardizing his future as a Division I college athlete. They have insisted they weretrying to rescue a troubled player whose off-the-field behavior was influencing his teammates and was jeopardizing his future as a Division I college athlete. McKinley football player Mani Powell said he wants his coaches back. More:Canton McKinley High School football coaches to face further discipline, possible criminal charges. Reach Kelli at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com. Talbert went on to say that video would not be publicly released due to federal student privacy regulations. He emphasized that the player had the ability to leave at any time and had the option of selecting an alternative food that did not contain pork. Its not like they put their hands on me, but they forced me to eat it, he said. His defense is all over the place. After the hearings, Canton City Schools spokeswoman Lisa Reicosky said Superintendent Jeff Talbertis expectedto make a recommendation to the Canton City school board regarding their employment outside of their coaching positions. Wattley and his staff deserved better than this, and more importantly, so did the young men in that locker room and the whole Canton McKinley community. Reach Kelli at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com. 330-438-2712 Fax: 330-580-3507 Jonas Wertin, Principal wertin_j@ccsdistrict.org McKinley Quick Links McKinley Virtual Tour The media could not be loaded, either because the server or network failed or because the format is not supported. "Caserio was a standout," said Kuberacki. Talbert said it was the surveillance video that gave him the information he needed to make his recommendation to fire Wattley and his assistants. Pattakos said the punishment was not merely for missing a single voluntary workout. Hall is a member of the Stark County High School Football Hall of Fame and the Canton McKinley Football Hall of Fame. In an email to 3News, Canton City Schools says its administrative team received a report of an incident that took place on Monday, May 24, during McKinley footballs strength and conditioning practice. He said the student had stopped regularly communicating with his coaches, had left workouts early, and had been acting disrespectfully to coaches. CANTON McKinley High School head football coach Antonio Hall has built quite a rapport with the Bowling Green coaching staff. 11, 2021 at 4:07 PM PDT. (Former St. Vincent-St. Mary head coach Dan) Boarman showed me a lot, how to take care of kids and everything that comes with the kid not just the football player but the student, the person and the athlete. "He's been the best offensive coordinator in the NFL, I think. Former Browns coach Paul Brown hails from nearby Massillon and, last summer, Canton erected a statue of former Browns running back and Pro Football Hall of Famer Marion Motley just down the hill from the museum. No Bulldogs coachs tenure has spanned more than five years since Thom McDaniels guided the program from 1982-1997. Other lawsuits filedEx-McKinley football player sues, alleges coaches coerced him to eat pizza against beliefs. We remain proud to fight for these wrongly maligned coaches and clear their good names in court, Pattakos said. We feel the coaches knew what they did and the judge wanted us to be specific. All rights reserved. Two days after Grimsley sent the message, the district suspended Grimsley, Wattley and six other assistant coaches while it investigated allegations of misconduct before firing Wattley, Grimsley and five other coaches on June 3. You can read Judge Adams' dismissal ruling below: Notifications can be turned off anytime in the browser settings. 2023 www.cantonrep.com. Following the hearings, the superintendent is expected to make a recommendation to the Canton City school board regarding their employment outside of their coaching positions, according to Canton City Schools spokeswoman Lisa Reicosky. Do you support the move, Interim McKinley Bulldogs football coach Antonio Hall will look to 'put our kids first', Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. It says in the Bible that its unclean if you touch it, said the player who said his family attends the Gathering of Christ Church in Cleveland. Gilbert has said the player was told that if he didn't eat the pizza, that his teammates would be forced to perform additional drills and that the player's status with the team was in question. The coach was trying to teach a lesson.". Pro Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for . Are you hungry? However, the family in question identifies themselves as Christian. This was about something much bigger.. It was probably going to be a touchdown to ice it. The others mentioned above stayed in football. The sprints werent working,Pattakos said. Repository sports writer Josh Weir contributed to this article. ", More Stark County sports from Steve Doerschuk: 'I know where to go and pour them': Fate of 40-year-old Hudepohl six-packs rides on Bengals winning AFC title, Super Bowl. They needed to get through to him some other way. "I don't think they gave him enough time in Denver. But attorney Peter Pattakos, who was retained by Wattley on Thursday, said Thursday that version of events is exaggerated and parts of it are false. Solon defeated Canton McKinley 61-40 in the opener and then Midview followed suit with a 70-45 win over Archbishop Hoban.. Solon and Midview will meet up at Medina High School on Saturday, March 4th at 7 p.m. in the regional final with a spot in the . And then we walk out into the auxiliary gym and theres a pizza in the chair, and I think coach I think Coach Brodie handed me the pizza and I set it down. He's only saidthe districts completed internal investigation has found that the coaches "engaged in actions that constituted inappropriate, demeaning and divisive behavior in a misguided attempt to instill discipline in the student-athletes.". And then they started telling everyone to grab 45-pound plates, but as I reached to go grab one, Coach Watt says, Not you, youre chilling, the player said. You can get anywhere . Updated: 1:20 p.m., Thursday, June 3, 2021. He recounted an encounter with one of the coaches at the mall recently. Attorney Edward Gilbert, who is representing the 17-year-old player at the center of the controversyand his family, on June 14 released the surveillance video that was taken on May 24 when the family says Wattley and his staff forced the player to eat an entire pepperoni pizza against his Hebrew Israelite religious beliefs as punishment for missing a voluntary workout. 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