SPORTS SCENE

 

    In response to a question from the Decatur Tribune, the Illinois High School Association is revisiting its previous ruling on the ineligibility of talented running back Jaquay Owens, who transferred from Eisenhower to MacArthur at the start of second semester.

    Here's the IHSA response from spokesman Matt Troha to my recent inquiry, "Dr. (Martin) Hickman has received some updated materials from the school (MacArthur) and will review them and make a ruling in the near future.

    "Please understand that because the student-athlete in question is a fall sport athlete (he plays football), spring sport rulings will take precedence, so it could still be some time before it is ruled on," said the IHSA statement.

    Owens is a MacArthur sophomore, who played his freshman and sophomore football seasons at Eisenhower, transferring there at the start of this year's second semester.

 

 

    To refresh readers minds, here's what we wrote this past winter after the IHSA originally ruled him ineligible.

    "There aren't any winners in the recent Illinois High School Association's ruling regarding the ineligibility of Jaquay Owens, the young sophomore running back from Eisenhower, who transferred to MacArthur for the second semester.
    "Certainly, not the Decatur school district, specifically Eisenhower and MacArthur high schools, who had to complete paperwork regarding the transfer which the former school did not sign off on.
    "Certainly, neither head coach Mike Goodwin nor Derek Spates.  Goodwin did everything he could to retain Owens and Spates was an innocent bystander in this as he did not recruit Owens.      
    "Certainly, not the IHSA that once again had to sit down another student-athlete from one of its member schools because the student-athlete did not follow the association's by-laws regarding residency and guardianship.  This is happening all too frequently for the governing body.  The Owens ruling is the latest the IHSA has handed down that ruled ineligible transfer student/athletes from Danville and Champaign St. Thomas More to Simeon, both of whom were basketball players. 
    "And certainly, not the student-athlete himself, who now must sit out a year playing the sport where he is one of the top two running backs in the city and county, who has a future playing somewhere on Saturday afternoons on a football scholarship.
    "Somewhere along the line Jaquay Owens received bad advice, who filled his head that his opportunities to play college football would be enhanced by playing at MacArthur for his junior and senior seasons instead of at Eisenhower where he would have been a returning 1,000 plus yard running back in a system that was designed to take advantage of his skills and talent.  He also would have had three offensive linemen returning, who would have opened up holes for him and he had his quarterback, Dylan Smith, and fullback Braxton Woodland, another sophomore, returning.  Eisenhower would have resembled the old Army teams of Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside with Woodland and Owens.  A playoff berth certainly was possible.
    "Now, Owens finds himself between the proverbial rock and hard place.  He literally is a running back without a team.
    "He's at a school he can't play for in 2013, meaning he loses the most important year of his prep career if he hopes to attract college recruiters so he can play for them Saturday afternoons.
    "There is one way Owens can return to the playing field this fall which is for him to transfer back to Eisenhower from MacArthur and that both schools and the Keil Building administration sign off on the return so the young man can continue his athletic career.  Dr. Martin Hickman indicated he would support such a transfer if the principals involved completed and documented all the required paperwork.
    "Here's the complete text of Dr. Hickman's statement regarding his decision,  "The IHSA recently ruled a transfer student from Eisenhower High School to MacArthur High School in Decatur ineligible. The student changed residences from the Eisenhower attendance area to the MacArthur attendance area, but the move resulted in the student no longer complying with the IHSA residence and transfer by-laws, thus resulting in ineligibility based upon IHSA By-laws 3.030 and 3.040.”    
    "Those bylaws deal with residency and guardianship of student/athletes.
    "Deputy Superintendent Lisa Mann said, "the District communication process for all IHSA rulings is to share the rulings with the student and family, notify athletic director, and abide by the ruling."
    "Mann said Friday morning administrators had met with the Owens family regarding the IHSA ruling.  Since Hickman left the door open for Owens' possible return to Eisenhower this semester to play football there this fall, we asked Mann Friday afternoon if there have been any discussions about his return to Eisenhower which she declined to speculate on because of confidentiality matters, but that she would ask the MacArthur administration. 
    "This writer doesn't care who does what when, but he wants Owens playing football in Decatur this fall somewhere.
    "Get this done," concluded that article.
    It's encouraging for Jaquay and his family that Hickman is revisiting the issue and will issue a new ruling in the near future.