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Coaches voiced suspicions about Northern athletics

Friday, May 15, 2009
(Updated 2:07 pm)
By Robert Bell
Staff Writer

GREENSBORO — Two days after Northern Guilford’s boys basketball team won the 3-A state high school championship, Page High basketball coach Robert Kent and Ragsdale High coach Craig Shoemaker chatted about the Nighthawks’ championship run.

Kent and Shoemaker had more than just passing interest: Northern and its coach, Stan Kowalewski, won the state title with two players who once played for Kent and Shoemaker before transferring to Northern.

“If we had the kid he stole from us, we would have won the state,” Kent told Shoemaker. “Same for you.”

“I agree,” Shoemaker replied. “With (player’s name deleted) you would have had the balance and depth you needed to win the Championship. I see now Northern is getting baseball and football players transferring as well.”

Shoemaker then brought up a News & Record article that ran on the eve of the boys state title. The story chronicled the large number of players who also played for the N.C. Gaters — an elite AAU program of which Kowalewski is a coach — who had transferred to Northern.

“I think one of the biggest problems is that no players/parents will talk about this because they don’t want to get blackballed by the gators (sic) in the summer,” he wrote.

The conversation, remarkable for its bluntness, is one of hundreds culled from more than 1,200 pages of e-mail messages released Wednesday by Guilford County Schools relating to its investigation into Northern’s athletics programs.

The N.C. High School Athletic Association stripped Northern of its basketball title Wednesday after determining the team used two players who should not have been attending the school.

An initial look by the News & Record at the heavily redacted e-mail messages offers little, if any, evidence of recruiting.

In fact, several show Kowalewski and former Athletics Director Derrell Force trying to educate families interested in transferring to Northern about local and state rules regarding recruiting.

Although none of the allegations brought up in the e-mail has been proven, they shed light on the growing frustrations and paranoia felt by coaches and administrators over the influx of talented athletes transferring to Northern.

When an assistant football coach at North Lincoln in Lincolnton asked Eastern Guilford High football coach Scott Loosemore for a scouting report on Northern in September 2008, Loosemore didn’t mince words.

“They are pretty good, have recruited Guilford County,” Loosemore wrote. “They have one kid that is supposed to be playing for us that is pretty good #21 I think. They also got about 8 kids from NE that would have started for them.”

The e-mails, which are public documents because they were written or received on a Guilford County Schools account, were requested by the News & Record last year after Kowalewski filed a defamation suit against Northwest Guilford Athletics Director John Hughes.

Kowalewski’s suit hinged on e-mail Hughes wrote to the NCHSAA deputy executive director, Que Tucker, and Northwest principal Angelo Kidd in 2007. Hughes said he was “convinced that Stan Kowalewski ... is actively recruiting and enrolling students at Northern who are not in the Northern attendance zone.

“The fact is, he is a very wealthy man who has the means to rent and provide addresses and transportation to several of his players.”

The messages, which date to 2007, also offer a glimpse, albeit a brief one, into the schools system’s investigation into Northern. The e-mail suggests officials were trying to keep some parts — or all — of the investigation under wraps.

On March 9 — one month before Northern principal Joe Yeager and Force resigned and schools officials went public with their investigation — schools investigator Carla Alphin asked Guilford County Athletics Director Leigh Hebbard if Northern had a school-wide athletics handbook.

Hebbard told her a school-wide handbook did not exist.
Alphin: “Can you ask for basketball, football and baseball or do you think that may raise questions?”

Some of the e-mail shows just how unpredictable the policing of high school sports can be in Guilford County.

In March 2008, Loosemore, the Eastern football coach, sent then-Grimsley coach Mark Saunders an e-mail warning him he might lose a player.

Loosemore: “Mark, I just wanted to let you know that I have several kids who are friends with (student’s name redacted) here. Word is his dad is still shopping him around, not to here, but to Northern.”

Saunders: “Yea (sic) I know his dad is avoiding meeting with me because I’m going to tell him to take his son and go wherever he wants, he is an idiot and I don’t need the headache.”

Loosemore: “It’s a shame, that kid is very talented and his father ruins things for him.”

Saunders: “Scott I think what’s going to happen is the district is not going to let him transfer and he will end up coming back to Eastern, which is not bad for you, you can ignore his father, that’s what I think will happen.”

Sources at Eastern and Grimsley told the News & Record the opposite happened: The student ended up at Northern.

Contact Robert Bell at 373-7055 or robert.bell@news-record.com

Accompanying Photos

File photo (News & Record)

Photo Caption: Northern Guilford High School

Update

The investigation so far
After hearing allegations of ineligible students playing athletics at Northern Guilford High School, Guilford County Schools began an investigation in late 2008. During the investigation, a Page High School football player who played in 2008 was ruled ineligible.

Developments
On Wednesday, school system officials found five Northern Guilford athletes were ineligible. The school was stripped of its 3-A state boys basketball title and the baseball, JV softball and wrestling teams had to forfeit victories, too.

What is next?
Schools Superintendent Maurice “Mo” Green said officials are investigating claims by the mother of the ineligible Page student that Page athletics officials knew her son lived outside the school’s area. Sources say Dudley and Northeast also will be looked into.

Comments

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whatcanIsay

May 15, 2009 - 7:19 am EDT

Let me start this one off. For ALL of the Coach K supporters, and why they are singling out Northern? There is ALL the proof you need right there in the 10 paragraph as stated below: (taken from a public email, which was stupid by the way)

"In fact, several show Kowalewski and former Athletics Director Derrell Force trying to educate families interested in transferring to Northern about local and state rules regarding recruiting."

I tried to explain on the other blogs, that a state championship would not be revoked on students and parents lying or using false residency. But, if any coach EDUCATED them on HOW TO DO IT, which MOST need the guidance to do so, then that makes them forfeit the games and state title. Now this is public records, so let's hear the excuses today from the Northern faithful. And what will not be put into the article, is how many rental houses belong to Coach K?

Robert Bell

May 15, 2009 - 11:25 am EDT

whatcanisay,
The paragraph you mention was poorly written on my part. In fact, we are running a clarification tomorrow. The paragraph is correct: there are several e-mails from Kowalewski and Force trying to educate families interested in transferring to Northern about local and state rules regarding recruiting." What I did not make clear in the story is that in those e-mails, both men were trying to have those families do things by the book. For instance, more than one e-mail shows Mr. Kowalewski receiving unsolicited advances from families about their children playing at Northern. In his response, Mr. Kowalewski informed the parent that he couldn't talk to the parent based on NC High School Athletic Association rules and that the parent needed to speak with Mr. Force. This, as far as I can tell, is how a coach should handle a situation when a family appraches him or her. Again, a clarification is running in Saturday's paper.

get the facts straight

May 15, 2009 - 2:54 pm EDT

Mr. Bell,
I don't think it was worded poorly. I think most people interpreted that paragraph as you intended which was that the emails showed evidence sympathetic to the coach. That being said, on a seperate point nothing to do with your article, most folks are quite certain the coach was very careful on his email knowing that people were gunning for him. I imagine the allegations are that he got some of these kids from his AAU organization to come to Northern even though most of them did not live in the district when the school was built though you know better than I the allegations since you are doing the research. I imagine the issues involve the arrangements made and who made the arrangements for these students to be in the district or not be in the district as in the case of two players. I recall that last year they had a very good team who made it into the playoffs in their first year as a school. Yet, the summer prior, they were getting hammered with 70 point losses in the State Games. They did not have any of these players playing. That very same winter, they become a powerhouse in their first year. A lot of taxpayer money was spent building this new facility and the purpose was to relieve the overcrowding at NW Guilford. Yet, it seems that these kids came from every district but Northwest and Northeast with possibly a few exceptions. My guess is that the County has some bombs that they are not able to and never will be able to divulge to the pubic that they felt necessitated the removal of this coach. I would also guess that the coach, from what you all described in the paper as having had a four hour interview and what the coach claims is a frame job, knows what the county has or allegedly has and would make it public in a lawsuit which is why he won't actually sue, but of course, I could be wrong. I really don't know. Hats off to you though for your coverage of this as I am sure covering this story is not an easy task.

evans weavil

May 15, 2009 - 3:05 pm EDT

It sounds like now you want to blame only 1 person who is no longer with the school system. I say where there was smoke there was fire and there were several "hands that were in the cookie jar". When you get caught then take the punishment, which I think was fair and administered by the rulebook.

edb59

May 15, 2009 - 7:38 am EDT

What a shame for the "student/athletes".........sounds to me that it is time for the State of North Carolina to address statewide open enrollment. This would put all this to rest........Hello??

Panacea

May 15, 2009 - 9:19 am EDT

With open enrollment, that would make recruiting worse, not better. Parents and coaches just wouldn't have to circumvent the rules.

Recruiting is wrong. Period.

There need to be firm, county wide rules in place to prevent recruiting whether enrollment is open or not (other than the sports issue, I support open enrollment).

fairthinking

May 15, 2009 - 9:20 am EDT

Guilford County is not the only place where this is happening. People have complained about the Durham's Hillside High School girls basketball team for year, because the head coach has an AAU that he uses to recruit and train players. AAU team members are guarenteed spots in the IB magnet program and on the varsity basketball team as freshmen.

Northern Guilford, Hillside, and many other school only value winning not what there decisions do to students. I applaud you Mo Green.

your.mom258

May 15, 2009 - 11:12 am EDT

you dont have to look as far as Durham, check out Forsyth County. Kids are constantly playing fall sports for one school, then winter sports for another all under the umbrella of saying they are "Magnet Schools". They shouldnt be allowed to compete against other teams in the NCHSAA.

VoiceofReason

May 15, 2009 - 11:17 am EDT

You all must be the most gullible group of people I've ever come across. You should be more intelligent than to simply take everything you read at face value.

Here are the facts: Coach K is a good coach, and he coached kids via his AAU programs that wanted to come to school and play for him. He took care of them, wanted them to go on to college, and they and their parents respected this. So they did what they could to follow him to N. Guilford. To this day, there has been zero proof that he actually recruited these players. If you call attracting kids to your school by volunteering your time and resources to help them become better people and go on to college "recruiting," then he is guilty.

Look at how many underprivileged kids he sent to college at HP Central - his rate of sending kids to college is undeniable.

And you people buy Hughes' assertion that he rented houses for people? You're idiots, and so is he, which is why he was sued for spewing such nonsense.

Be more intelligent, people - look at facts, not allegations from jealous opposition.

VoiceofReason

May 15, 2009 - 11:26 am EDT

Oh, and if the media/school administrators/parents spent half as much time focusing on education as they do on sports, the students in the community would greatly benefit. For the school system to spend time and resources (estimated at $200K) on this investigation whilst simultaneously cutting teachers' salaries is unconscionable.

Jimmy Jones

May 15, 2009 - 12:07 pm EDT

VoiceofReason,
You are the most gullible of them all then, because if there were any allegations that could not be proven, then Coach K would still be there. So, for you to think that there was nothing going on or that nothing had happened, then YOU ARE the most gullible of them all.

Robert Bell,
Coach K is a smart person; therefore, do you really think he would email "recruiting" information to parents when he knew that his emails were public record? The investigation team wasn't going to find anything in the emails, because Coach K was too smart for that; however, it was obvious that the investigation team found enough information some where else that led to Coach K's dismissal. So, there is still some research that needs to be conducted on your part that will eventually give you the answers for this scandal. You are fishing, but you haven't gotten the bite yet.

VoiceofReason

May 15, 2009 - 3:20 pm EDT

Jimmy Jones,

Do you not think the administrators felt pressured to remove Coach K due to the press coverage and the fact that they had spent 6 weeks and ~$200K investigating? If they had nothing to show after a lengthy investigation, it would have been an embarassment. I still have not heard of proof that Coach K cheated. If I see it, I will gladly stand corrected.

whos.real.

May 16, 2009 - 9:39 am EDT

If you believe every thing the media says, you sir are rediculous. The media is blowing this way out of proportion.(some of the "ineligable players" were on jv softball, and jv cheerleading, not particularly sports northern won every game with per say). Every school has issues with inelligeble players (might i add that there were only 5 ineligable players out of the WHOLE athletic department). And every school has an issue with this, not just northern. It is absolutely perposterous that the media has chosen to make a scene out of northern. Get real guys come on.

Jimmy Jones

May 16, 2009 - 10:50 am EDT

whos.real,

You sir are the one ridiculous. Taking up for a man who is now leaving this school high and dry, along with the fact that he is trying to pull the players who all created this problem for the school. Everyone that defended the transfers defended it for academic reasons. If this was the case, then why would they even be thinking of leaving the school? You see, it was a LIE buddy. The administrators knew, the whole county knew, and the parents and players are proving it. Plus, the investigation is not over yet, so five players may not be the final number. The investigation is still on going with the football team, and there are many rumors about that program as well. So, it is sad that you would take up for this man. It is even more sad that these parents and players are going to run from the problems and leave the rest of the population to heal and correct the problems that this coach, parents, and players created. Good luck Northern. I do feel that you will get stronger and smarter because of this.

thestatelottery

May 15, 2009 - 11:29 am EDT

Whatever

bballcrazy.sarah

May 15, 2009 - 12:51 pm EDT

Having been part of the team where Stan was the coach, and prior to him being fired, I can only tell you that I have first hand experience of having watched him operate. I don't consider myself gullible any more than you do of yourself but I got hooked by his charm along with a number of other parents, players and staff.
He is a charming salesman and credit where credits due, an effective coach. However, I have witnessed him manipulating the system, putting kids up in his home in order to fool the system, etc. I don't know whether he rented houses to put up some of the kids, as has been suggested, but I do know first hand that he put kids up in his own home and he did so specifically to get around the system. He did so in collusion with the parents, so I guess he wasn't the only guilty party; but he was the facilitator.
And Lord help you if you cross him as an individual or a school, you will be threatened with or subjected to a lawsuit, as many have discovered. Don't you ask yourself why it is that someone who claims to totally honest would resort so often to having to threaten to sue others for libel or slander. Perhaps there's something to the old adage "where there's smoke, there's fire".
But are we condone dishonesty even if he is an effective coach. It's a pity that he is prepared to resort to any means in order to win and at any cost, given his teams' successes - or perhaps that is why they were successful. But where are the honesty, integrity, morals, etc. that are supposed to be part of the life lessons all our kids are supposed to be experiencing. Given Stan's benevolent nature, maybe he's trying to expose our kids to the negative side of life, so that they can learn to tell the difference. I'll leave it to others who have already made the case as to why this is so unfair to all those kids who legitimately should have been on their respective teams but were kicked off to make room for his imports, so that he could ensure his wins.
Now to the issue of gullibility. This is not an isolated incident of his manipulating the system just at Northern, there is a trail of this behavior. How many times should he commit the crime before we recognize it as that? In the immortal words of W, "Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me" (even though W screwed up quoting the idiom).

Jimmy Jones

May 15, 2009 - 1:06 pm EDT

Bernard Madoff for basketball maybe?

VoiceofReason

May 15, 2009 - 3:29 pm EDT

bballcrazy.sarah,

Are we all so skeptical that we truly believe he put kids up in his home to "fool the system?" Do you not think that, just maybe, he could actually be looking out for these kids and removing them from bad environments in order to give them a brighter future? Again, look at his record of sending kids to college who otherwise would have never made it. He has done much more good for the community than bad, and I agree with his assertion that this investigation is a witchhunt.

Jimmy Jones

May 15, 2009 - 5:06 pm EDT

VoiceofReason,

Skeptical or not, why was Coach K the only coach let go? There were inelligible players in other programs (wrestling, etc.), so why was he the only one let go (at least so far)? Makes you wonder if Robert Bell hasn't given us all the information yet.

jksal2002

May 15, 2009 - 3:27 pm EDT

a quick search of tax records reveals he owns 3 houses in his name in N. Greensboro. A very easy search will reveal if he has students living in them.

thePoint

May 15, 2009 - 6:51 pm EDT

HOW IS ANYONE DEFENDING "COACH K"? When working with youth as a coach, mentor, role model are we teaching that it is all about winning? Basketball is a sport where all of great characteristics can be learned. Having said that what has Coach K taught his basketball athletes? Win at all cost.
Let's just look at his record... He has a winning AAU team, a winning high school program at HPC and Northern but what about the athletes? Which one went on to play at the next level? Which one got a full scholarship to play college ball? Which one? Anybody? Coach could Kareless (sic) has not helped anyone but his self-serving self! Before you respond name one of his athletes.

Panacea

May 15, 2009 - 9:00 pm EDT

I don't even know this guy, so I have no reason to be jealous of him.

Sounds to me like you are faced with allegations you don't want to believe, so you attack them.

His petulant statement about how kids shouldn't play sports in Guilford County was all I needed to hear to realize he's a nut job who has no business working with kids.

And we don't know Hughe's assertion is "nonsense." Lots of people get sued for frivolous grounds. A lawsuit is a great way to shut people up, and that's what this coach is trying to do--shut this guy up.

Disagreeing with someone doesn't make one unintelligent. Telling people they are idiots makes one sound like a crank.

TOTHE POINT

May 15, 2009 - 1:10 pm EDT

I have for a number of weeks now been reading and keeping up with the issues and comments that surround the Northern High School athletic problems and not being from this area and having a vast amount of knowledge and experience in this field I felt it time that I added my two cents.

1. It seems to me that there is already a foundation of rules and guidelines that have been set by the NC High School Association to follow regarding all the matters addressed in the past few weeks regarding recruitment, and eligibility and where a person officially lives. From my point of view you have a number of people at Northern High School and other district schools that are wearing the title of AD, Principal and Coach but are not enforcing the rules. Case-in-point, the AD at Northwest who missed the boat regarding the athlete's eligiblity on the JV baseball team or the case at your Page HS where a football player was deemed ineligible. In some of the online comments in the defense of the AD it was noted that there were those who said that they are too busy. Busy because of class load and cutting grass. That is hog wash, if they are too busy that the eligibility of kids cause issues like those that I am reading about then they should not be in this business. Because of that, innocent kids are suffereing.

2. Regarding the basketball coach at Northern. He needs to be banned from getting a job at any institution in this country. He is a disgrace to the profession. You do not need to be a rocket scientist to see that he has taken, and has played an intimate roll in, if not, the recruitment of those athletes - he directly or indirectly influenced them. As a basketball coach at one time myself I can say to you that his comment about not knowing the addresses of his players is an outright lie. Any coach in this country that says that is a liar. Most coaches if they care about their kids know where they live and have cemented on their refrigerator door their cell numbers and the numbers of their girl friends if they have one.

3. Before I wrote this I took the liberty of looking up a number of other state's rules regarding high school athletics and it seems that North Carolina has rules but they are not being enforced. However, I will say that Conneticut and my state of Iowa has a policy that parents when they move into a district must show proof of residency by getting a judge to validate that residency. This would take a great deal of the pressure off of the AD, Principal, and Coach who does not want to do his or her job.

4. Finally, to all those parents both involved and not involved - get a life! This whinning reminds me of why as a teacher I stopped going over my test in class because for each wrong answer you had a number of students who had a lot of different reason why they got the question wrong. Here you have a number of parents who arguing about a number of different reason some academic, some are arguing because of the real reason which is the fact that the rules were not enforced and some parents and coaches exploited the lack of enforcement and then there are those parents who just are so madly in love with this coach K that they are willing to be blinded by the truth that someone they love and trusted did in deed CHEAT! Please note that I am not saying he is a cheat, but, the evidence that I have been reading the past few weeks and especially the past couple of days says he is.

5. It is a SHAME, that these kids are going to have to live with the fact that a championship is being taken away from them. But, it is the right move to take. It is a SHAME that a baseball team will not be allowed to play in the playoffs - but it is the right move to take. It is a SHAME that a Principal, a coach and an AD are now out of a job in these troubled times - and it is a SHAME that some parents kids will miss out on an experience that other kids in this country are currently taking part in - but if they had of followed the rules that have been set out as the guide for accountabiltiy sake we would not be having this conversation and I could be watching the corn in Iowa grow.

VoiceofReason

May 15, 2009 - 3:23 pm EDT

To The Point,

Regarding your point about Coach K knowing players' addresses - they weren't ruled ineligible because of the address they reported to the school, but because they weren't actually living at these addresses. Would you, as a coach, confirm that your players are sleeping where they say they are every night? If so, more power to you. But I hardly doubt that you or Coach K have the time to follow kids around and ensure they're sleeping/living where they say they are.

Funny You Should Say That

May 15, 2009 - 6:07 pm EDT

VoiceofReason,

Funny you should say:

"Do you not think that, just maybe, he could actually be looking out for these kids and removing them from bad environments in order to give them a brighter future?"

Maybe...just maybe that was his thinking (and even if it WAS his thinking that doesn't make breaking the rules o.k. or right).....but do you think that MAYBE......just MAYBE he was thinking "you know...this kid could REALLY help us in basketball"

I agree that he might not have the time to follow every kid around to see where they lived...BUT, with the few kids in question that were 'transfers' I feel like there was a GOOD chance that he knew EXACTLY where they lived...and then we aren't talking about EVERY kid. We are talking about a handful. Wouldn't be too hard to check the address of the few TRANSFERS would it?

I think he definitely knew more about the addresses of the kids in question than is being stated. I also think that you claiming everyone else is 'gullible' sounds like you defending someone who had a bit of disregard for the rules. If that is what you want your kids taught then that is your choice. Sounds like as long as you win it is all good but as soon as you get called on it then it is all of a sudden 'unfair' and those schools and coaches that are attempting to do things by the book are just 'jealous'. As far as I am concerned, I want my kids to know that doing things the RIGHT way is the PROPER way. That WORKING for what you have is the PROPER way. That EARNING your way is the PROPER way. That taking shortcuts and then blaming everyone else is NOT. That not owning up to your part in it is NOT.

I'm not taking anything away from the hard work the kids at Northern put in for their championship. They obviously worked hard for it. I do, however, think that the proper decision was made in the situation. I also think the Northern community, parents, and fans should be just as upset with the staff for getting your school in the situation it is in instead of defending the staff so vehemenently.

oscardad44

May 15, 2009 - 7:48 pm EDT

I we could have this much publicity centered around educating GCS students and less on athletics then perhaps the district would not be in such a poor academic status.

Lets start by looking at the assessments for all students and see how many objective students are not mastering in the classroom.

OK Everyone let it go the decisions have been made and now lets more on focus on each schools academics and the lack of achievement!

So the statement schools are using now is lack of budget means no summer school lets see how many thousands of students that will impact this year!!

fairness

May 16, 2009 - 8:00 am EDT

The article failed to mention that Coach Kent from Page is also a Gater AAU coach and has been for years.

whos.real.

May 16, 2009 - 9:56 am EDT

exactly

turkey

May 16, 2009 - 10:32 am EDT

Ask yourself this question. How many of his AAU players play for him and it's not because he isn't a good coach. He doesn't go after them because he is ethical. Get over it and quit trying to move the spotlight from one to another.

Jimmy Jones

May 16, 2009 - 10:59 am EDT

And? Who cares if Coach Kent coaches the AAU team? Does this article also mention that Coach Kent didn't get half of his AAU team to play at Page? Get real people and quit defending a coach who is proving to the county what his true face is. Since he had two inelligible players, then why haven't we heard that he has apologized to the rest of his players? I mean, if he really cared for his players, then why hasn't this step been taken. Instead, he just throws the AD and Principal under the bus like he had no part in all of this. That to me is sad....

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