Brian Rosener is the keeper of the Semoball Cup which is presented to the school with the most successful season. It is based on a formula that takes into account the combined winning percentage of all sports teams plus bonus points for advancement in postseason play for both teams and individuals. The bonus points are divided by the number of teams a school fields. Rosener has been the sports editor for the Daily American Republic in Poplar Bluff, Mo. since December 2001. He was born and raised in St. Louis, where he attended Lindbergh High School and Webster University. He is married to Jennifer, a Poplar Bluff native, has a son Jack and a dog named Satchel who stands in for his @semoballBrian photo.

Naylor hit with MSHSAA penalty

Posted Friday, January 26, 2007, at 12:53 PM

This from today's DAR, which is on the streets now. I've already talked to MSHSAA and have scheduled a meeting with Naylor officials today. A story will be published in the Sunday edition while Tanner Kent and Troy Hyde are also working on stories for next week. Hopefully, I'll have time to make the Bluff-Cape game tonight.

By DAR STAFF

COLUMBIA -- Naylor will have to forfeit games from the 2005-06 season, including the district title the Lady Eagles won, and will not be allowed to play in the upcoming playoffs as penalty for violating MSHSAA rules.

In a press release issued Thursday afternoon by MSHSAA, its Board of Directors updheld a previous decision by the Association's executive director and the appeals committee regarding violations of transfer, residency and student eligibility by-laws by Naylor High School at its regularly scheduled meeting earlier this week.

Naylor will have to forfeit all athletic contests in which the students in question played during the 2005-06 season and the program will be withheld from the 2007 MSHSAA district and state basketball series.

The Board also issued a reprimand to the administration of Naylor High School for, "it's use of non-faculty athletic coach Gene Deckard, during the 2005-06 school year in the sports of girls softball and girls basketball." Naylor self-reported the violation and is currently in compliance said the statement.

The investigation, which was first reported in the March 7, 2006, edition of the Daily American Republic, started in February 2006 after MSHSAA received reported violations involving student residency and eligibility violations by Naylor.

The investigative process was completed over the summer, MSHSAA said in its statement, and Executive Director Dr. Kerwin Urhahan issued an official opinion that "sufficient evidence of MSHSAA by-law violations regarding residence, change of residence, transfer and certification of student eligibility by Naylor High School existed."

On Aug. 24, 2006, the Appeals Committee upheld the executive director's opinion. Naylor then appealed the Appeals Committee decision to the Board of Directors, which met Wednesday.

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just a short question. Why was the administration isssued a reprimand for the "use of non-faculty athletic coach Gene Deckard". was it something he did because i was unaware that it was illegal to have a non-faculty coach.

-- Posted by El Burro on Fri, Jan 26, 2007, at 1:16 PM

Brian Rosener's response:
By-law 120 has certain requirements for athletic coaches. Schools can use non-faculty coaches under certain stipulations. In other words, you just can't pick a guy off the street to coach a team.
Thank you Jesus! I am so glad that MSHSAA are on their toes! I would hate that a school get away with something so criminal! Nothing gets by MSHSSAA these days.

-- Posted by NoDisclosure on Fri, Jan 26, 2007, at 4:36 PM
PLEASEEEEEEEEEEEEE....MSHSAA needs to focus on another area school along with NAYLOR........LETS TALK ABOUT �

-- Posted by Bravette1990 on Fri, Jan 26, 2007, at 9:21 PM

Brian Rosener's response:
Let's talk about if this was fair for the kids at Naylor and not other area schools and who may be doing what.
If this small school in Southeast Missouri gets penalites for breaking MSHAA's rules, then what is happening at the bigger schools in the state? It sounds like to me it is vendetta from a coach who was let go from his job, and finally MSHAA itself. Who regulates MSHAA? The answer is nobody.

-- Posted by afam53 on Sat, Jan 27, 2007, at 9:31 AM

Brian Rosener's response:
Actually, MSHSAA is nothing without the schools who are apart of it. The Board is made up of school administrators, each from a different part of the state. MSHSAA is regulated by the member schools who vote on ballot issues each year.
Brian,

Did you know that Coach Deckard was employed by Doniphan for a few years prior to his employment at Naylor and he wasn't cleared there as a coach either. However, MSHAA didn't act on his employment there. Perhaps Naylor thought that he was cleared since he was previously employed by Doniphan as a coach. He does have enough college hours to serve as a non-faculty coach. Everyone who has a problem with MSHAA lately seems to be with their inconsistency on how they handle complaints. They will tell you that a school has to make a formal charge but that is not how this situation was handled. They receive many complaints about other schools for possible violations of their bylaws and they will not act until a member school makes an official complaint. In Naylor's case all it took to get the ball rolling was a complaint from a disgruntled former employee acting as an individual.

-- Posted by commonsense on Sat, Jan 27, 2007, at 11:26 PM

Brian Rosener's response:
First, Coach Deckard was employed by Doniphan before going to Naylor -- that was in today's story -- and that's probably why there was a mix-up there on Naylor's part. Naylor self-reported that violation and just got what was basically a warning from MSHSAA and they fixed the problem.
Second, MSHSAA's policy on complaints has kind of a double-edge sword thing going there. They say they won't look into something unless it comes from another school, however, they pass along things from the public to the school in question and it's up to that school to take care of it. If nothing is done by the school, then MSHSAA will step in. That's how I read the policy as it concerns this case.
Sounds like to me you had better make sure that your "I's are dotted" and your "T's are crossed" when accepting transfers for your athletic program.

-- Posted by anaconda73 on Mon, Jan 29, 2007, at 7:37 PM
This is not "new" news, just breaking news. And I have to agree with Brian; what about the kids who played? The kids who went to the practices; the kids who sat on the bench, the kids who did their homework after games, the kids who sweat and poured everything they had for a game, a sport they loved and went into it with innocence and high school expectations.

Don't be fooled-shame is easily repaired by public denial.

I can't point the finger anywhere; but in my opinion, I would venture to say that there is much more to this than a school "unknowingly" hiring a person to coach, not one...but two sports. It's a shame that the hearbeat of deceipt, anything to win and oops-we never knew are alive and well in our high school sports programs. It's about winning; it's not about the kids anymore.

-- Posted by Grandpa K on Tue, Feb 6, 2007, at 2:28 PM

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