… Physically harming is a lot different. The lawsuit also names Canton City Schools as a defendant. In a letter shared with 3News Investigator Rachel Polansky, Canton City Schools informed Wattley of his placement on administrative leave on Wednesday. See below to read the full 10-page ruling from Judge Adams: Copyright 2022 WOIO. Powell said Wattley and all of the assistant coaches have becomefather figures to him and his teammates. Video showed the moments the player claims the coaches forced him to eat a pork-based pepperoni pizza after showing up later to a non-mandatory practice. Traffic alert: Crash closes 224 West at Kenmore Leg in Summit County, Fan Expo Cleveland to feature 'The Office' cast, Christina Ricci and more as celebrity guests this March, FORECAST | Another surge in temps with highs topping 60 degrees, 3 skyscraper-sized asteroids making approach to Earth this week, an investigation into misconduct against a player, Bigger than basketball: How a small team, facing huge odds, became champions, Keith Wakefield retires after 30 seasons as Perry Panthers football coach, OHSAA to expand football playoffs to 16 teams, Romero Harris - Weight room coach and baseball assistant. "As a coach, you can be frustrated watching that. He is McKinley's fifth head coach in 10 seasons. and last updated 6:19 AM, Jun 02, 2021. He said he began seeing a counselor in June 2021 and has made progress. They have said the player chose to pick the pepperoni off the pizza and eat it. 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. CANTON, Ohio With an attorney by his side, the father of a junior at McKinley Senior High School shared his anger after he told News 5 his son, who is a . As for the coaches who had other jobs within the district, there will be upcoming meetings to determine their futures in that capacity. newsletter. The player testified he knew consequences existed for missing off-season workouts, which he said the coaches called mandatory. Repository reporters Kelli Weir, Charita Goshay,Steve Doerschuk and Josh Weir contributed to this story. It wont be the same without them, said Powell, a rising senior who is considered McKinley's top returning player. He also had exceptional talent that few McKinley coaches have recently enjoyed. When Pattakos asked the player why he participated in a rib-eating contest with his teammates in 2019, he recalled that he had asked Wattley whether the ribs were beef or pork but Wattley didnt know. When head coaches like Bob Rupert, Dave Cady and Mike Riley were routinely taking Bulldog teams to the Final Four, they benefitted with better talent, better support, and players with better attitudes, which definitely contributed to their success at Canton McKinley. Records show the Canton City School District and Superintendent Jeff Talbert were already dismissed from the lawsuit. I miss my boys. The 17-year-old belongs to. This is an extraordinary tactic that is used to teach an extraordinary lesson to an extraordinary young man under extraordinary circumstances.. His statements were supported by five McKinley football players who attended the school board meeting in support of their eight coaches. As we approach trial, any attempt to taint a jury pool is truly not a practice I would ever engage. He has beenan assistant coach at McKinley, GlenOak and St. Thomas Aquinas. "He's proven he's a hell of a coach," Rose said. CANTON - The former McKinley High School football player who is suing the Canton City School District and his former coaches over alleged civil rights violations says the coaches likely. When head coaches like Bob Rupert, Dave Cady and Mike Riley were routinely taking Bulldog teams to the Final Four, they benefitted with better talent, better support, and players with better attitudes, which definitely contributed to their success at Canton McKinley. A district investigation found the charges against the coaches to be true, and Superintendent Jeff Talbert called their actions "inappropriate, demeaning, and divisive." Fletcher played 256 NFL games, third all-time among linebackers behind Junior Seau (268) and Clay Matthews (278). No Bulldogs coachs tenure has spanned more than five years since Thom McDaniels guided the program from 1982-1997. Gilbert says his team, the player, and his family are now determining if they will appeal the dismissal. ', Greece's worst-ever rail crash kills dozens, crushes cars, Dust storm turns skies across Texas orange causing low visibility conditions for drivers, What to know about OHSAA district wrestling: Area wrestlers heading to four sites. Seven high school football coaches have been fired from McKinley Senior High School in Canton, Ohio on Thursday following an incident in which a Jewish student-athlete was forced to eat a . Head coach Joe Mazzulla couldn't hide his . Hall is one of the drivers behind the Marion Motley statue planned for a spot near the Pro Football Hall of Fame. With Josh going there now, Carr staying is a done deal.". 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. All rights reserved. Melt Bar & Grilled closes 2 Ohio locations, Ohio Gov. CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - New developments occurred this week in the pizza scandal involving a former Canton McKinley football player and his coaches. John "Spider" Miller is an old Canton coach who disagrees with Jack Rose on Mayfield, but agrees on McDaniels. McKinley went 14-6 in Wattleys two seasons as head coach, with a couple of second-round playoff losses and an 0-2 record against rival Massillon. Attorney Michael Kahlenberg, who represents the player and his father in the coaches defamation lawsuit, said he cannot comment on pending litigation. GlenOak 22. He blamed the district for conducting a rushed and incomplete investigation, noting that Wattley was interviewed for only 18 minutes and that only three of the 40 players present wereinterviewed. Gilbert has said the family has agreed to meet with district officials before pursuing a lawsuit. CANTON, Ohio The head football coach at an Ohio high school and six other coaches there have been ousted after a football player said he was . 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. He said he has lost respect for the McKinley coaches he once admired. The player testified that he was grounded because his father found a Black & Mild wrapper. He previously served as the quarterbacks coach for the University of Michigan and also previously serving as the interim wide receivers coach in late 2018. McKinley went 14-6 in Wattleys two seasons as head coach, with a couple of second-round playoff losses and an 0-2 record against rival Massillon. But they should have known that he didnt eat pork, he contends. He recounted an encounter with one of the coaches at the mall recently. The coaches, who were dismissed from their coaching and school district jobs last year,have maintained that they did not force the player to eat anything, that they did not know about the players religious faith, they had offered him chicken nuggets as an alternative and it was the players decision to pick off the pepperoni and cheese and eat the pizza. With the same vote, the board also deemed assistant football coaches Frank McLeod, Zachary Sweat and Josh Grimsley as ineligible for future coaching positions. CANTON, Ohio (WOIO) - Former Canton McKinley football coach Marcus Wattley is still fighting to get his job back as the head coach of the Bulldogs. Pattakos, who said the player apologized to the coaches and showed up for the voluntary workout the next day after his punishment, blames anassistant coach for inflaming the situation by reporting an exaggerated version to administrators and the players family. "Black Hebrew Israelites consider themselves Jews; I also consider them to be a Black religionbearing many of the markers of African American spirituality," she said. Wattley was hired at McKinley in 2019 and McLeod has been coaching since 2004. 2023 www.cantonrep.com. Rose's Tigers beat McDaniels' Bulldogs in an overtime shootout in the 100th game between the old rivals, in 1994. I try to incorporate that with my coaches every day.. CANTON, Ohio Eight coaches from the Canton McKinley High School football team have been placed on administrative leave, including head coach Marcus Wattley. McKinley Football Staff Players (57) Staff (1) Antonio Hall Head Coach Are you the coach? Wattleyallowed the player to pick off the pepperoni butpork residue remained, the attorney said. He served as interim during the 2021 season. McKinley's Harold Fannin Jr. runs after a catch against GlenOak at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium on Friday, Oct. 15, 2021. A jury trial in Stark County Common Pleas Court is set for Sept. 19. But of course, we don't know they acted as a group. It doesnt make any sense.. I learned from a great man how to coach football. All rights reserved. At the next days workout, the player said coach Harris told him that he was going to have to apologize to the team and he agreed to do so. Overall, he was a coach for 40-years and was named to the Ohio high school coaches hall of fame. He said he would have eaten the chicken nuggets. McDaniels kicked in addition to playing quarterback at McKinley when Miller coached the Bulldogs' defensive backs. New England Patriots offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Josh McDaniels watches from the sidelines during a game against the Dolphins, Sunday, Jan. 9, 2022, in Miami Gardens, Fla. On a. I try to incorporate that with my coaches every day.. Nordonia, 11-13 last year, was looking to also avenge a 58-42 loss last year to McKinley as a 19th seed in the . I love them, they know that, Wattley said. Its unclear whether the player told the coaches about the yardwork. Canton McKinley sophomore Dante McClellan looks to make a play at Akron East, Wed., Feb. 15, 2023 "We struggled at the rim," Vlkajkovich said. (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. Few have better insight on McDaniels than current McKinley head coach Antonio Hall. 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. More on the McDaniels family: Canton council approves street name change to honor McDaniels football family. The decision left the player, the players father, Kenny Walker, attorney Edward Gilbert, and former assistant football coach Josh Grimsley as defendants. They are more than coaches, said Powell, who lost hisfather when he was young. But it wasnt until roughly five years later when the player, then in eighth grade, started to strictly follow the faiths dietary restrictions. McDaniels had a 26-year head coaching career that included head coaching stops at Warren G. Harding High School, Canton McKinley High School and Massillon Jackson High School. So do my clients.". Former McKinley football coaches dismiss defamation lawsuit, intend to refile Kelli Weir The Repository 0:00 0:57 The former Canton McKinley football coaches who have been waiting for. Hall was a school kid when he watched McDaniels' 1992-94 run as a McKinley quarterback; then he was a lineman on McKinley teams that won state titles in 1997 and '98, with Josh's dad, Thom, as head coach, and Josh's brother, Ben, at quarterback. The player said he continued to protest and at one point kicked the box, but the box was brought back to him. A federal judge in U.S. District Court dismissed seven former football coaches from a lawsuit filed by a former football player and his family, citing insufficient evidence to support allegations that the player was forced to eat food against his religion. He was one of several football players who attended the disciplinary hearing Monday to show their support for Wattley and McLeod. I will defer to Judge Haupt and her able staff to handle. Antonio Hall was named head coach of the McKinley High School football team on Monday. Gilberts attorney, Stephen P. Griffin, declined comment. The Canton City Board of Education voted to fire the coaches on June 3, 2021 after surveillance camera video surfaced of the incident. The player, who transferred to another school district last school year, said hes still dealing with anxiety and thinks about the May 24 discipline every day. 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. CANTONWhat Canton City school officials called a misguided attempt to instill discipline has led to the firingof McKinley High School head football coach Marcus Wattley and six of his assistant coaches. 2022 OHSAA High School Football Playoff Brackets (Ohio) Region 1. She ruled the alleged defamatory statements attributed to district officials either contained no false statements of facts, were opinions and judgment calls or had not been published. 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.. The lawsuit also had been filed against Canton City school leaders but they were dismissed from the case in January. Black Jews, who maintain a Christological perspective and adopt Jewish rituals. I'm just glad he has this opportunity. The coach was trying to teach a lesson.". 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.. Last offseason, former McKinley star Harold Fannin signed with . The district has declined to provide details of what happened on May 24. Canton City Schools' administrative team received a report of an incident that took place during its strength and conditioning practice on Monday. More about Hebrew Israelites: Canton family's faith at the center of McKinley High football coach abuse allegations, I miss my boys. He had planned to do some exercises with a stretch band due to his shoulder injury. I remember them cussing at me, but I remember Coach Wattley saying that if I dont eat it then … the team is going to keep doing the workouts and if I was to leave, then I couldnt come back, he said. Canton McKinley Bulldogs 2022 high school football preview, online post that accompanies the transcripts, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. And he believes they should have stopped the punishment when he said that day that it violated his religion. Caserio is general manager of the Houston Texans. Reach Kelli at 330-580-8339 or kelli.weir@cantonrep.com. Grimsley's attorney, Bartholomew T. 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