OSSAA rules Jenks must forfeit 9 games
BY LYNN JACOBSEN AND JAMES ROYAL World Sports Writers
Friday, August 07, 2009
8/07/09 at 4:05 PM
View the documents relating to
Jarrett Lake’s eligibility, including
the e-mail that sparked the investigation.
Documents obtained by the Tulsa World on Thursday detail the findings of the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association regarding the eligibility of student-athlete Jarrett Lake.
In the documents, released by Jenks Public Schools through the Open Records Act, the OSSAA found that Lake was ineligible because his aunt, identified as Claire Williams in OSSAA documents, maintained permanent residence in North Carolina while leasing property in Jenks. Lake was also ruled academically ineligible because he was ineligible at his previous school due to unpaid fees.
Because of the violations, the OSSAA ruled Jenks would forfeit nine games from the 2008 football season and the football and boys track teams would be placed on one-year warning. If the teams violate more rules, they will face additional penalties, including probation. Jenks plans to appeal the ruling at the OSSAA board of directors meeting Tuesday.
Lake's name and other identifying information were redacted in the documents, but the World has learned from several sources that he is the player in question. Lake played football and ran track for the Trojans during the 2008-09 academic year, and he has committed to play football at the University of Oklahoma.
A July 30 letter from OSSAA Executive Director Ed Sheakley to Jenks athletic director Tony Dillingham and Jenks High School principal Mike Means laid out the organization's findings. They were:
Lake's aunt served as his guardian but never provided the school district with legal documentation of her status.
Williams maintained a residence in North Carolina while Lake was enrolled at Jenks, which would require a waiver to prevent a violation of dual residency rules. The OSSAA claims Williams abandoned that lease in December and returned to her home in Durham, N.C., for at least part of the holiday break. She went back to North Carolina in January for several months because of health issues.
When Lake enrolled at Jenks, he was not in good standing academically at his previous school (Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia) due to unpaid fees.
Williams could not be reached for comment.
The letter stated Williams provided Jenks with a lease agreement for the upcoming school year when Lake enrolled before the 2008-09 academic year. When Williams returned to North Carolina in January 2009, Lake began living with Tyrone and Ronda Lynn, the parents of former Trojan Gabe Lynn, a former teammate of Lake's who will be a freshman at OU this season. The OSSAA stated this "could be deemed an economic incentive provided to encourage a student to remain at the School, in violation of OSSAA Rule 9." Rule 9 deals with regulations relating to recruitment or influencing student athletes for athletic purposes.
Williams' house in Durham has been for sale since July 2007, according to a letter from the Williams' real estate agent provided to the OSSAA. Maintaining this residence was an issue for the organization, Sheakley said in the July 30 letter.
"Acquiring a new residence within the particular school district, while still retaining the previous residence, is not sufficient to establish eligibility," he said.
In letters to OSSAA staff member David Jackson on April 28 and May 27, Dillingham said he felt Lake was eligible to participate in athletics. In the May 27 letter, he said he reviewed Lake's residency status with Williams when Lake enrolled. Dillingham went on apologize for his "oversight in not having them complete the dual residency paperwork."
According to the July 30 letter, Lake wasn't in good standing at Hargrave because he "had not received credit from the last semester due to unpaid fees."
"Under OSSAA rules, a student who would not be eligible at (his) previous school remains ineligible until the eligibility issue at the previous school has been resolved," the letter states.
The OSSAA's letter also states a review of Lake's unofficial transcript indicated he would be "starting (his) fifth year of high school in the coming school year." Without filing for a hardship waiver, he would not be eligible for the 2009-10 academic year.
Jenks director of communications Tara Thompson said the district would not comment on the OSSAA's findings at this time.
"It would be inappropriate for the Jenks School District to comment on the specifics of this issue before the OSSAA has reached a final decision," said Tara Thompson, director of communications for the district. "The appeal is scheduled for Aug. 11, and the district will respect the appeal process as outlined by the OSSAA."
Letter from irate parent leads to investigation
The investigation into the eligibility
of Jenks football player Jarrett
Lake was sparked by an anonymous
e-mail sent April 10 by a person
who claimed their son had been
“screwed out of playing time” by
Lake.
An e-mail was sent to several
staff members of the Oklahoma
Secondary School Activities Association
from the address
badad2011@aol.com. An e-mail
sent to the address Thursday was
returned with a message stating it
was undeliverable.
The April 10 e-mail was obtained
by the Tulsa World through an
Open Records request with Jenks
Public Schools, which received the
e-mail from the OSSAA.
“I am now advising you for the
last time before I sue each of you individually,”
the e-mail said. “… I dare
each of you to ignore this e-mail. I
have already retained an attorney
who advised me to send you one
last e-mail before we take action.
OSSAA Executive Director Ed
Sheakley said the investigation was
a result of standing policies and not
because of threat of legal action.
“Any time we get information
about a rules violation, it is our protocol
to investigate with the school,”
Sheakley said.
Forfeited games
The OSSAA ruled that Jenks
must forfeit nine games from the
2008 football season as a result
of the ineligibility of player Jarrett
Lake. Jenks has appealed the ruling,
and the appeal will be heard at the
OSSAA board of directors meeting
Tuesday. The games in question
with Lake’s stats in each game:
|
Date | Opponent | Score |
|
Oct. 3 | Sapulpa | 63-0 |
|
Lake’s stats: 5 rec./126 yards/2 TD |
|
Oct. 10 | Broken Arrow | 21-7 |
|
Lake’s stats: 1 rec./3 yards |
|
Oct. 17 | Memorial | 63-0 |
|
Lake’s stats: 1 rec./29 yards |
|
Oct. 24 | Bartlesville | 50-13 |
|
Lake’s stats: 1 rec./52 yards/1 TD |
|
Oct. 31 | Muskogee | 34-6 |
|
Lake’s stats: 2 rec./54 yards |
|
Nov. 7 | Sand Springs | 56-28 |
|
Lake’s stats: 4 rec./55 yards/1 TD |
|
Nov. 14 | Enid | 45-28 |
|
Lake’s stats: 1 rec./10 yards |
|
Nov. 22 | Edmond Santa Fe | 24-3 |
|
Lake’s stats: 2 rec./53 yards |
|
Nov. 28 | Mustang | 35-20 |
|
Lake’s stats: 2 rush/17 yards |
Lynn Jacobsen 581-8461, James Royal 581-8394
lynn.jacobsen@tulsaworld.com, james.royal@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Wide receiver Jarrett Lake played football and ran track for Jenks in the 2008-09 school year. He has committed to OU to play football.Tulsa World file
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