OT: Belleville Football Investigation
https://www.freep.com/story/sports/high-school/2022/10/26/michigan-high-school-football-belleville-investigated-for-violations/69593689007/
It appears as though Belleville football is under investigation for "undue influence" violations.
According to a football player who ended up at Detroit King, Coach Crowell made overtures to him about playing at Belleville. Plus, Coach Crowell also allegedly picked up the player and took him to summer practices.
Making initial contact with a player is a violation of the undue influence rule. Providing transportation is apparently an even more serious violation.
The MHSAA and Belleville's AD are both conducting investigations.
Thought this was relevant due to Belleville typically having D1 players and Michigan recruits/commits on its roster.
I know we have many HS football coaches and parents on the blog, so also thought maybe someone would have some insight on the situation.
My apologies if the link doesn't work correctly. Yes, my user name checks out...in this case.
October 26th, 2022 at 5:51 PM ^
I think this kind of thing is an open secret? Kids in the area complain about them getting all the best athletes on a pretty regular basis.
October 26th, 2022 at 5:53 PM ^
Belleville must be running an amazing transactional NIL program!
October 26th, 2022 at 8:48 PM ^
Ok, it is an open freep link. So I could not, and will not work to follow it.
But. I will say this. The recruiting definition and rules have changed this year in MHSAA.
I know nothing about Belleville or football recruiting.
This may be the deal.
Before, by MHSAA rules, before high school, it's open season. By the rules for this year you cannot talk to a non HS player about your high school program. And any pre HS player that talks to you, you are by the rules supposed to refer to your administration.
I do not know the year of this player, or school. I would not want to accuse a player, coach, or admin of anything. But even conversations about pros and cons that were had before are not allowed by my reading of the rules this year.
October 26th, 2022 at 9:02 PM ^
Many things you just typed are incorrect, sorry.
October 26th, 2022 at 9:27 PM ^
Edit:
I will not argue this.
you and your admin interpret pgs 12 thru 15 of the handbook how you want. I will do what my admin tells me and you do what you want..
October 26th, 2022 at 9:56 PM ^
Sure. Guess I have no clue what I am talking about. :)
October 26th, 2022 at 10:07 PM ^
Oh, I doubt that. You are probably far wiser than I am. What school do you coach at? Which program?
I would love for my AD to call your AD and hope that mine can be convinced of your side.
Which school was that again?
October 26th, 2022 at 10:55 PM ^
You’re not convinced by nuh uh you’re wrong and snark?
October 26th, 2022 at 11:07 PM ^
No, I'm not. I am always looking to learn. Maybe this person has a view that I can embrace to improve my program.
I would love to know where you can recruit and have my boss be convinced that i can do it too..
Constant improvement!
;)
October 27th, 2022 at 10:12 AM ^
sorry for the snark, i sounded like a complete jerk. what I should have elaborated on is that even in previous years, it was never acceptable to recruit and be open game for students prior to entering high school. The "links" rule is not in place at the middle school level, but you were still never able to openly recruit students to your school. Does an incoming freshman have immediate eligibility? Yes. Can you openly recruit students to attend your high school when they are not registered at your school? No. That is not a change for this year.
October 28th, 2022 at 6:45 PM ^
+1 to you.
I understand where you are coming from.
I wish you the best of luck with your program and believe that we probably operate the same way as coaches.
October 26th, 2022 at 5:52 PM ^
OP here.
My apologies for the Freep link, but that's where the report has thus far appeared...and the existence of the investigation is confirmed by both the MHSAA and Belleville's AD.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:15 PM ^
Just can’t get excited for prosecuting a guy that talks to a kid about his future and expresses interest in being a part of it. Giving him a ride doesn’t sound so awful either. These rules are bogus man!
October 26th, 2022 at 6:29 PM ^
Mark Harmon and the spicoli knock-off from Summer School would have been more apropos.
I’m not going to celebrate any HS coach or teacher getting flack. Though getting a stud player is often a fast track to getting an analyst job a a college program that the kid goes to.
October 26th, 2022 at 10:07 PM ^
I guess Tunneler doesn’t watch Cobra Kai.
I take the opposite side. I get excited to prosecute a guy looking to exploit teenagers for his own pay day without truly caring about the child’s best interest.
October 27th, 2022 at 4:24 AM ^
No, I don’t watch Cobra Kai, whatever that means. Is it a TV show that shapes your outrage meter? Look man, if said coach makes an offer to coach said player, and it somehow benefits just the coach & not both of them, then get your pitchfork out. Prosecute the shit out of him. Because it gets you excited.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:55 PM ^
Normally I'd do my now habitual PSA about how to add a functional link.
But Freep? Nah.
October 26th, 2022 at 8:03 PM ^
Under the circumstances it's acceptable.
October 26th, 2022 at 5:55 PM ^
Isn't Crowell the one that has a beef with Harbaugh? Is that still a thing or has it been settled by now?
October 26th, 2022 at 6:05 PM ^
his "beef" is likely wanting money for his players
October 27th, 2022 at 9:45 AM ^
So you're saying his beef is cabbage?
October 26th, 2022 at 6:10 PM ^
There was a rumor that Michigan defensive back coaches were criticizing the technique of players in the secondary from Belleville and blaming it on coaching. They gave up on patching things up supposedly.
Since then, we recruited Andre Seldon and had a linebacker committed last year before he ended up somewhere else (not sure if we told him to look elsewhere or he changed his mind). Hard to imagine there's a lot of issues still if we're getting their players, even if only a couple over a few years.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:32 PM ^
There's been more public tension between Crowell and Michigan than every other HS in Michigan combined. I don't think those issues will ever go completely away as long as Crowell is coaching there.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:37 PM ^
Probably gets money directly from msu under the table to steer kids away
October 27th, 2022 at 10:18 AM ^
Aaron Alexander was the LB commit. He...had to look elsewhere, so he's redshirting at UMass right now.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:13 PM ^
Oh no, giving a player a ride. What a horrible thing to do.
October 26th, 2022 at 9:32 PM ^
Agreed. I don't really get why the MHSAA has all these rules. Kids move schools all the time for all kinds of reasons. If there is a better opportunity for a kid, they should be able to take it.
Mick McCabe is pretty old school and really loves all of the restrictions on player movement.
October 27th, 2022 at 9:51 AM ^
The kid hadn’t enrolled in the school. You just can’t go into another district and pick kids up. It’s blatant recruiting
And Mick is a hypocrite on all this. He never calls out private schools and his man crush from Farmington Hills Harrison was one of the biggest cheaters all time
October 27th, 2022 at 10:22 AM ^
I wonder how you would feel if your kid's team had 3 Division I recruits plucked from the squad, leaving your kid's team to go 2-7 while those three DI kids went elsewhere and got to the state finals.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:14 PM ^
Getting rid of him at Belleville would be a big positive for Michigan.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:41 PM ^
Did you consider maybe Crowell is why there is so much talent at Belleville? Rest assured he is not steering kids away from Michigan.
October 26th, 2022 at 7:26 PM ^
The time a Bellville kid pans out will be the first.
October 27th, 2022 at 10:25 AM ^
I'm not sure what this means. Do the talented kids evaporate into thin air without Crowell? No, they would just be going to different schools, where maybe they would be more easily recruited.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:50 PM ^
Would be a huge positive if anyone from Belleville did anything at the D1 level.
October 26th, 2022 at 7:41 PM ^
Their Sophomore QB will do huge things at the D1 level. Kid is special
October 26th, 2022 at 8:11 PM ^
Oh yeah he’s a stud. He’s better as a sophomore than Dante Moore was, and I think Moore is the best QB in this class (ahead of Arch).
However, it’s quite something a kid who played for the Motor City Wolverines ended up going to high school 40 miles away
October 26th, 2022 at 8:29 PM ^
Half of Belleville’s roster is usually from Detroit. People forget Crowell was at Cass as an assistant. I still have no idea of how they get to school.
I remember Nate Oats housed kids in an apartment complex owned by Terry Mills and Grant Long.
October 26th, 2022 at 9:04 PM ^
That’s what the OG of Michigan High School recruiting John Harrington of Harrison did. His wife owned an apartment complex
October 27th, 2022 at 9:52 AM ^
Just posted that above! He was a big time cheater that Mick Mcabe adores
October 27th, 2022 at 3:58 PM ^
Oh if you only knew how they got to school, that would be a freep story.
But is it really bad for these kids? They go to a decent HS, maybe a better school than their home district, play at a high level and get plenty of looks from colleges. A Belleville kid panning out at the next level is a separate conversation. There are many instances of "busts", but a few success stories as well (which is all relative), and a few where the jury is still out.
The article indicates that Crowell was his first offer, so you can assume it was followed by a few more and he chose to go to school w/ a 5 star QB. I doubt there are many differences in how each program operates.
October 26th, 2022 at 6:59 PM ^
https://www.freep.com/story/sports/high-school/2022/10/26/michigan-high-school-football-belleville-investigated-for-violations/69593689007/
In addition, there was a recent article in the Free Press that likely named the player ..wide receiver at ML King.
October 26th, 2022 at 7:08 PM ^
That’s the same article I linked. Nice to see I’m not the only person who can’t properly post a link!
October 26th, 2022 at 7:09 PM ^
The disparity in rules for MHSAA are absurd. There are other schools that are permitted to recruit and those schools shouldn't be in competition with those who can't. Hard to get mad at Belleville until that's remedied.
October 26th, 2022 at 8:21 PM ^
I can say with 100% certainty West Bloomfield and Belleville are recruiting similar to the private schools, without the tuition. This is a very uniformed take.
October 26th, 2022 at 7:43 PM ^
Belleville huge cheaters. CC bigger cheaters. OLSM the biggest cheaters. South Christian and GRCC ridiculous cheating. Brother Rice completely comical especially in baseball. Cass and King steal everyone’s Kids. River Rouge raids everyone in Southeast Michigan.
October 26th, 2022 at 8:09 PM ^
It does seem interesting that all the most talented kids in the whole Detroit student population go to either King or Cass.
October 26th, 2022 at 8:19 PM ^
Well, you can pass a test to get into Cass.
Cass has a *very* active alumni base. Going back decades. I wonder if they get involved in athletics.
October 26th, 2022 at 8:20 PM ^
You left out De La Salle who might hold the prize at least as far as Eastside schools go, but Roseville is making a push now with the same coach who got busted at South Lake for recruiting.
October 26th, 2022 at 8:31 PM ^
Yes the ole Maker of Men Warren De la sale.
Roseville is comical too. They did the same in basketball too