Montclair Prep Football Team Is Subject of Investigation : Hearing: Southern Section official says school could face expulsion from the California Interscholastic Federation.

The Southern Section Executive Committee of the California Interscholastic Federation on Wednesday ordered an in-house investigation of the Montclair Prep football program following charges of grade tampering and free tuition.

The allegations were made during three hours of testimony regarding the eligibility appeals of cousins Leland and Derek Sparks, senior football players who withdrew from Montclair Prep last week and enrolled Monday at Santa Ana Mater Dei.

“If the accusations stand true, then Montclair Prep could receive the maximum sentence, which is expulsion from the CIF,” Southern Section Commissioner Stan Thomas said. “I’m not surprised by what I heard today. I’ve heard these things about that school before.”

If Montclair Prep is expelled from the Southern Section, it would not be allowed to compete against other Southern Section schools.

In their testimonies, Jerome and Eric Sparks, uncles of Leland and Derek, accused Montclair football Coach George Giannini, assistant coach John Hazelton and Principal Vernon Simpson of misleading the two players on a variety of subjects, including eligibility guidelines, academic standing and playing time.

“I never saw any report cards, and I’m not sure how many they received,” Jerome Sparks said. “We never had to pay for any tuition. And every time there was a problem, Giannini would just say, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.’ ”

Eric Sparks, an assistant coach with the football team last season, said it was not uncommon for a player’s grade-point average to jump from an 0.6 to a 2.8 from one semester to the next.

According to Mater Dei Principal Lyle Porter, Leland Sparks’ transcripts showed that he didn’t have enough credits to be eligible last year. But he still played football, basketball and baseball.

Montclair Prep Athletic Director Greg Reece and Giannini attended the meeting, but turned down opportunities to refute the accusations. Simpson was out of town and could not be reached for comment.

Hazelton, who said he did not attend the meeting, said Wednesday night that the Sparks family repeatedly had been billed for tuition and that invoices were ignored.

Montclair Prep has been investigated twice by the Southern Section in the past five years. The most recent investigation came last May and centered on accusations that athletes were being put up in nearby apartments. The Southern Section investigated and found no wrongdoing.

Hazelton termed the latest accusations a “witch hunt,” and said that once Montclair Prep presents its side of the story, the allegations will prove false.

“It’s buffoonery,” Hazelton said. “When it is examined point by point, there isn’t a prayer (of proving the charges).”

Derek Sparks, 17, moved from Texas to Southern California in the summer of 1988. He transferred to Montclair Prep in the spring of 1989 and last season rushed for 1,944 yards and scored 35 touchdowns as a running back.

Leland Sparks, 18, moved from Texas last year to play for Montclair Prep. Although he reportedly arrived as a senior in good academic standing, Montclair Prep was said to have asked him to repeat his junior year. Jerome said Giannini promised him that Leland would be granted an extra year of eligibility.

The Southern Section denied Leland’s fifth year of eligibility two weeks ago, hours before Montclair Prep’s opener against Farrington High in Honolulu. Derek played in the game, but the eligibility ruling prompted Jerome to withdraw his nephews from the school and enroll them at Mater Dei.

The Southern Section reversed itself Wednesday, ruling Leland a hardship case and granting one more year of eligibility. The committee ruled that Sparks and his family were misled by officials at Montclair Prep.

However, Leland probably will be academically ineligible for the fall semester unless he meets Southern Section academic requirements. According to Porter, Sparks’ transcripts revealed that he did not meet minimum academic requirements last spring to be eligible this fall.

Hazelton admitted that Leland was “deficient academically,” but insisted the school had no reason to mislead him regarding eligibility.

“What do we gain by that?” he said. “Once this is out in the open, the witch hunt will reverse. Our books are open. Everything they have said will be discredited.”

Hazelton said he could not understand the Southern Section’s reversal of Leland’s eligibility.

“I don’t know why they did it,” he said. “Maybe they did it to get the Sparks out of their hair. The Sparks group is a wild bunch.”

Thomas said he will make a final decision regarding the transfers by the end of the week.

Porter said that both Derek and Leland met the Southern Section’s residential requirements when they moved to Santa Ana to live with Derek’s mother, June Sparks, last week.

Derek has been practicing with Mater Dei since Monday. All that is needed to clear him to play tonight against Tustin is a legal transcript of his grades. Mater Dei officials said they had transcripts with them on Wednesday, but they had not been signed by the proper Montclair Prep official.

Hazelton insisted that Jerome is manipulating Derek and that the All-American tailback never wanted to leave Montclair Prep.

“I have a message on my phone machine,” Hazelton said, referring to a tape recording made last week, when Sparks left the school. “He’s sniffling. He said he didn’t know what to do. He said, ‘Coach, tell the guys I miss them.’ “Jerome is a school shopper. He’s marketing this kid, and it’s that simple. Derek is a pawn.”

Porter said he hopes to have signed transcripts for both students today. He also said that according to the transcripts in his possession, Derek is a B-minus student.

Staff writers Steve Elling and Chris Foster contributed to this story.