For now, 2 Gulf football players ineligible

Posted Sep 1, 2010 by Eddie Daniels and Rick Harmon

Updated Sep 1, 2010 at 06:18 PM

NEW PORT RICHEY – On the day Gulf High announced the three finalists for its head football coaching position, the Florida High School Athletic Association announced it would not open an investigation into the recruiting matters of the school’s football program.

But in accepting the report, two players will remain ineligible for the 2009-10 school year.

“… the FHSAA has accepted the Pasco County report regarding this incident and that the Association will not open any investigation into the matter,” Polansky said in an e-mail.

The program recently came under scrutiny for the transfers of Ty’Shon Peters and Kris Aratchiysky from Anclote High to Gulf.

Under FHSAA guidelines, a student that transfers from one school to another is ineligible to play athletics at the new school until reinstated by the FHSAA.

36.1.7 Eligibility Effect of Violation: A student who is found to have been athletically recruited or is found to have received an impermissible benefit will be ineligible for interscholastic athletic competition for one or more years at the school to which the student was athletically recruited or at which he/she received the impermissible benefit, and may be declared ineligible for interscholastic athletic competition at all member schools for one or more years.
 
Because the report to the FHSAA said recruiting was involved in Peters and Aratchiysky and was accepted by the FHSAA, Policy 36.1.7 in the handbook is invoked.

“We’re going to appeal and utilize due process for these student-athletes,” said Gulf principal Steve Knobl said by telephone.

“(County athletic director) Phil Bell and I were on a conference call with Denarvise (Thornton, FHSAA Associate Executive Director for compliance and eligibility) during the internal investigation and we’re still hopeful that we can persuade the FHSAA to consider these two student-athletes eligible.”

A FHSAA appeals meeting is scheduled for Thursday in Bradenton but a request to be heard at the meeting had to be filed by Aug. 19, well before the situation at Gulf came to light. The next appeals meeting is Oct. 7, one day before Week 6 of the football season.

The investigation, led by Bell, for alleged illegal recruiting violations, ended with head coach Jay Fulmer, 43, tendered his resignation after five years of leading the football program and the school to self-report to the FHSAA.

During Fulmer’s tenure, the Buccaneers went 31-22, earning the program’s first playoff berth in just his second season. His team fell one game shy of a playoff appearance during his first season at the helm.

Currently, assistants Ken Hollar and Brandon Rusche are handling the Buccaneers’ offense and defense, respectively. The school’s administration hopes to name a permanent coach on Friday.

Tim Boggess, Tom Carter and Hollar are being considered for the post.

“We are only interviewing these three applicants at this time,” Knobl said in an email. “We have other applicants outside the district and state, but due to the urgency and timing, we have chosen to interview internal applicants only at this time. The interviews will be tomorrow and we hope to make an official announcement by Friday.”

Gulf opens its season Friday when the Bucs host Hudson.