Utah State Recruit From Kennedy Ruled Ineligible by NCAA

Wesley Morris, a standout wide receiver and defensive back at Kennedy High who was signed by Utah State, may have become one of the first persons affected by the newly formed NCAA Clearinghouse.

Morris’ scholarship was revoked after it was discovered by the Clearinghouse that he was ineligible, even though he was told by school officials in March that he had met NCAA requirements.

The Clearinghouse was formed to provide a standardized review of eligibility for NCAA athletes.

At issue is Morris’ third performance on the ACT, a test in which his high school coach said Morris scored a 16.5, which rounds up to the NCAA minimum of 17. According to former Utah State assistant coach Dewayne Walker, and under the assurance of academic adviser Don Ross, Walker told Morris he had met the eligibility requirements and was offered a full scholarship, which Morris accepted.

Morris reported to the Logan campus Aug. 9 and took part in practices until he was asked to leave the field by school administrators after being notified of his ineligibility. Morris left the campus on Tuesday.

“Each week, we’re given a review by the Clearinghouse,” Utah State sports information director John Lewandowski said. “When we received a notification there was a problem with the test scores, we withheld him from practice.

“It must be the average of those scores, not the best of the test scores.”

Morris’ average of the three scores was 16.25, which does not round up to 17.

“That’s not the way it was explained to us,” said Kennedy football Coach Mitch Olson, who monitored the recruiting process. “Either way, employees of that school made the student miss three opportunities to pass that test. They guaranteed us that he had passed. . . . The bottom line is they messed up; they’re covering their (tracks) any way they can.”

After Walker told him he had met NCAA requirements, Morris canceled other scheduled tests in which he could have increased his score and instead concentrated on his core classes.

Walker has since become the defensive backs coach at Brigham Young; Ross is now at Dayton. Walker, who offered the scholarship, was not aware of Morris’ situation until Friday.

“I left (Utah State in March) with the understanding that his test scores were fine, and now I’m hearing this,” Walker said. “It’s ridiculous. Obviously (Utah State) wouldn’t have brought him up there if everything wasn’t legit.

“Obviously, somebody did a miscalculation; you let the kid practice for a week and all of a sudden you find out the kid is short and you had all the way from March until now (to figure it out)? It’s not right.”

But Lewandowski explained the differences between the old system, in which universities were responsible for determining an athlete’s eligibility, and now.

“Don Ross and Dewayne Walker aren’t the final say in this thing, unlike in the past, when maybe the school registrar made the decision,” Lewandowski said. “Now it’s in the NCAA Clearinghouse and it’s cut and dry--either you’re eligible or you’re not. In the past, maybe there was a little leeway. . . but that’s not the case now.”

Coach Charlie Weatherby did not return phone calls.

Morris, an all-Garden Grove League player, has enrolled at Golden West College. Because he hasn’t met the SAT or ACT requirements, if he earns a scholarship to a four-year school, he can’t leave Golden West after his third semester for spring practices.