THE BIG STORY Oft-controversial help shape 2014 high

school season
Dozens of high school players change schools every
year. Rarely do they have an impact like this.
By EJ Holland TexasFootball.com
The 2014 high school football season is more than halfway over. Some
players are enjoying banner seasons while others are trying to simply
do their part to help the team reach the playoffs.
Earlier this month, Kiki Hill was willing do anything. He just wanted the
opportunity to suit up.
At 6-foot-3, 205 pounds with 4.5 speed, Hill is one of the most versatile
athletes in the state. As a junior at Aransas Pass last season, Hill
recorded 25 receptions for 651 yards, rushed for 140 yards, scored
eight total touchdowns, intercepted three passes and blocked two
kicks.
Naturally, Hill was expected to have a monster senior season for the
Panthers and pick up some FBS offers along the way. The former is no
longer possible and the latter appears to be in serious jeopardy.
It all started this August when Hills father, Green, was hired as an
assistant at Goliad. Hill followed his father to the new school, but in
order to participate in football he had to meet the athletic transfer
requirements set forth by the UIL.
Those rules state:
An individual is presumed to have changed schools for athletic
purposes if he or she participated with his or her former school in any
League athletic contest or practice in grades eight through twelve
during any previous school year until:
1. The students parents change their residence to the new school or
attendance zone.
2. The superintendent (or designated administrator) and principal

and/or coach of the previous school sign a Previous Athletic

Participation form stating that the student was not recruited to the new
school and did not change schools or attendance zones for athletic
purposes.
3. The superintendent (or designated administrator) of the new school
signs a PAPF stating that the student was not recruited and is not
changing schools for athletic purposes.
4. The parents sign a PAPF either in front of the new schools
administrator or a notary public that they reside in the new school
district or attendance zone and the change was not made for their
childs athletic purposes.
5. The district executive committee approves the completed PAPF.
In laymans terms, Hill needed quite a few people to sign his PAPF,
including officials from Aransas Pass. Simple enough, but things didnt
exactly go according to plan.
Aransas Pass refused to sign Kiki Hills previous athletic participation
form. The District 15-3A, Division I Executive Committee, then ruled
him ineligible to participate in varsity athletics at Goliad.
Goliad appealed the decision to the UILs State Executive Committee,
which approved Goliads appeal. But there was also the matter of
establishing residence. Hill had been practicing with Goliad since
August, but some of his family was reportedly still living in Aransas
Pass.
So Goliad had to determine if Hill met the requirements of the UILs
parent residency waiver, which was originally rejected.
It would be up to the school to verify that the family had moved and
they were in compliance with the residence rules, Kate Hector, media
coordinator for the UIL, told the Victoria Advocate. If they feel
comfortable that he is in compliance with the rule, the school can
determine he is eligible.
Goliad ruled Hill eligible last Friday and allowed him to play against
Hallettsville, where he scored three touchdown in a victory. But that
could have some major repercussions down the line.
What happened was just weird, said Mike Forman, who covers high
schools for the Victoria Advocate. The district executive committee
met twice. The first time SA Brooks wasnt there and it was 3-0. Then
SA Brooks showed up and Mathis changed its vote to make it 3-1. That
in itself was bizarre.

Goliad is taking a big risk. They better make sure they have their stuff
down. I wouldnt be surprised if someone challenges their decision
right away. And that would mean they would be playing with an
ineligible player.
A similar situation happened down in the Rio Grande Valley when
Harlingen South running
Taylor Harlingen was denied eligibility to play football in 2014 by two
different District Executive Committees as well as one at the UIL state
level. Following his final appeal, Taylor and his family moved to
Tennessee.
Taylor eventually made his way back to the Valley after playing in one
game in Tennessee and enrolled in Lyford. The District 16-3A DI
Executive Committee confirmed his eligibility by a unanimous 5-0 vote.
Each case is different, said Mark Cousins, Director of Athletics for the
UIL. It comes down to each individual school district and the policies
that are in place. Our rules require that transfers are not eligible until
they fill out the necessary paperwork. The district executive
committees then make their decisions. We generally dont get
involved.
That is unless a situation like Hills of Taylors occurs. But usually
transfers, even if they do raise eyebrows, dont run into too many
issues. This year, it seems like there have been more high profile
private or public to public school transfers than ever before.
In June, Dallas ISD fired 15 coaches, administrators and other
employees involved in a basketball recruiting scandal. But lets not
pretend this is simply an isolated incident. The fact of the matter is
kids transfer to different high schools for athletic purposes all the time.
With more than 1,000 schools in the state, its just difficult for the UIL
to regulate. On the other hand, a lot of kids do have legitimate reasons
for transferring such as parents getting a new job in a different town or
an opportunity for a better education.
And some teams just get lucky those students end up at their schools.
Take Blake Lynch the do-it-all athlete who is currently committed to
Baylor transferred from Troup to Gilmer and instantly made the
Buckeyes the favorite to win the 4A Division II state title.
Blakes is a very personal and private matter that he really doesnt

want discussed. It was a situation with his family so everyone is

different, said Gilmer head coach Jeff Traylor. Blake did not move for
athletic reasons or Coach (Dennis) Alexander would not have signed
the form that he did not move for athletic reasons. So I think they are
all different and I dont know about the rest of them, I just know about
Blakes situation.
Traylor added:
Blake is one of many good players we have here. Hes a bright kid,
high character, hes very humble, multi-talented. Hes big, fast, strong,
he can catch he can run, he can block, he can tackle. Theres not much
that Blake cant do. The most thing about Blake is his commitment to
being a good person and being a Christian role model for our kids and
hes just a different kind of person.
Houston Lamar head coach Tom Nolen hit the jackpot when the Texans
received transfers from FB Marshall quarterback JW Ketchum and
Bellaire Epsicopal running back Tyreik Gray two of the top recruits in
the state.
Theyve both added another skillset to our offense, Nolen said. We
already have Ronnie Wesley, hes a starter and an excellent back, so it
gives us a lot more weapons. I was excited about both of them when
they came over.
But what about the schools that lose these stud players?
Hallettsville entered the year ranked No. 1 in 3A DI but took a huge hit
when it lost quarterback Nate Kowalik, who transferred to none other
than district foe Goliad, where his father, Russell, was named principal.
Kowalik helped Goliad get off to a hot start while Hallettsville opened
the year with two losses before rattling off four straight victories.
It was a little bit of disbelief, said Hallettsville coach Tommy Psencik.
I have never had that happen in 26 years of coaching where a senior
that had success left the team here in Hallettsville, so that shocked me
a little bit.
We really didnt have a choice, we had to move on and get another
quarterback ready. And luckily we found Brent Motal, and he
transferred in when he was in eighth grade from Sweet Home, Texas,
which is one of the neighboring districts to us. We got very fortunate to
find a good replacement behind Nate.

Whether its legitimate or not, transferring has become all the rage at
the high school level in the Lone Star State. And its a trend that
doesnt
appear to be going away anytime soon.
Ten More Impact Transfers
LB Anthony Hines: Episcopal School of Dallas to Plano East
ATH Christian Wallace: Sealy to Katy Tompkins
ATH Ladarryl Blair: Dallas Kimball to S. Oak Cliff
QB Devin Williams: FW Southwest to Mansfield Timberview
WR James Proche: Prime Prep to DeSoto
QB Jalen Williams: Houston Bellaire to La Marque
OL Hanner Shipley: Marble Falls Faith to Marble Falls
WR Brenndan Johnson: Waco Reicher to Hewitt Midway
QB Dillon Sterling-Cole: West Orange-Stark to Spring Westfield
DB Jaylon Lane: San Angelo Central to Nacogdoches