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Fryer: CIF plays this one by Blue Book
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Columnist says ineligible players might have a case in their appeal.
They have a saying at the CIF-Southern Section office: "The Blue Book will set you free."
The Blue Book is the collected CIF-SS constitution, by-laws and rulings. You can get a copy at the CIF-SS office in Los Alamitos, or download a copy at cifss.org. Much of the Blue Book is full of by-laws and rulings that cover all 10 sections of CIF, while some consists of by-laws and rulings specific to the CIF-Southern Section.
Here is the rule — rule 27, section 5, part d — that made football players Michael and Connor Loftus athletically ineligible for the 2008 football season at Orange Lutheran after they transferred from Servite:
"A student at any grade level who transfers to a new school within one calendar year of the relocation of his/her coach to that school without a corresponding change in residence shall be considered to have transferred for athletic reasons and shall not be eligible to participate in the sport(s) coached by that coach for one calendar year from the date of enrollment in the new school."
This past November, CIF State executive director Marie Ishida made the following clarification: "If a student transfers to a new school following the student's high school coach or club coach, with or without a change of residence, then such transfer is a potential violation of CIF Bylaws ..." CIF-SS commissioner Jim Staunton said via e-mail that Ishida's clarification was addressed to all CIF member schools, and was published on the CIF-SS Web site.
Two current Orange Lutheran football assistant coaches, Greg and Joe Cicero, had been Servite assistant coaches into the spring of 2007. They became Lutheran coaches before August practices began. The Ciceros are good men and good coaches, both contributing greatly to the success of Servite when they were there and to the success of Lutheran since.
Servite athletic director Alan Clinton said nobody from Servite contacted the CIF-SS office about the Servite-Cicero-Lutheran connection, and CIF-SS spokesman Thom Simmons verified that the section office did not require any direction. "We read the papers," Simmons said about what prompted its examination of the Loftus transfers.
From this vantage point, it appears the Loftuses have a good case for an appeal of the ruling that keeps the Loftus boys (Michael, a kicker/punter/safety who currently is a junior, and Connor, a freshman who is a quarterback/safety/kicker) athletically ineligible until Jan. 29 of 2009. They have to prove that the Ciceros' status at Lutheran had nothing to do with the move, and convince Staunton that the boys' attendance at Salem Lutheran School from kindergarten through eighth grade and Orange Lutheran's many non-athletic attributes were sufficient enough to create reasons to transfer.
But the Loftuses – good kids from a good family, from all accounts – would be up against a tough precedent. The CIF-Southern Section is 16-0 in defending itself against transfer athletic eligibility appeals. Of course, the New England Patriots were 16-0 at one point, too, and we know what happened to them …
Perhaps also not helping the Loftus case is the change of residence, from Villa Park to Corona del Mar, which takes geography out of the reason for the transfer.
Personally, as the parent of two former high school athletes, I would have read any rules pertaining to my children, and sought clarification from experts in the field, if a transfer was considered.
Yes, the Blue Book will set you free – free of mistakes and misconceptions. Like at least one other important book, you really have to read it to comprehend it and if you have any questions, submit them to somebody who understands it better than you do.
Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com
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