Allan Trimble
Photo by Keith Owens
One of the nation’s leading high school football coaches, Allan Trimble, of Jenks, Okla., has been suspended from his football duties for the remainder of the 2009 season, Superintendent Kirby Lehman told the
Tulsa World.
Athletic director Tony Dillingham also has been suspended for 15 days and assistant football coach David Alexander has been suspended for two games.
Following an investigation by a Tulsa law firm, Trimble was found to have helped a current Jenks player, Jarrett Lake, move from Virginia last year and be allowed to rent a room in the home of local booster Clyde Griffith, who now is banned from the program. Lake later moved in with the family of a teammate.
The Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association ruled that Lake never did meet residency requirements. Therefore, the perennial state-champion Trojans had to forfeit nine games from last year and their Class 6A state runner-up trophy.
Lake, a University of Oklahoma recruit, was ruled ineligible for his senior campaign. A 6-foot-2, 210-pound wide receiver, Lake caught 20 passes last year for 600 yards and five touchdowns.
For the past 13 years, Trimble’s teams have dominated Oklahoma’s largest class, compiling a 162-17 record with nine state titles – six of them in a row. They have often been ranked among the nation’s elite.
“It’s just a mess and keeps on getting more and more complicated,” Tulsa World sports writer Barry Lewis told MaxPreps. “As far as on the field, I don’t think it will have any effect.”
The Trojans played under the guidance of interim head coach Loren Montgomery, who was the offensive coordinator, on Friday at Sapulpa and rolled to an easy 62-27 victory.
“Those guys – even with distractions – are such a solid, strong team when the lights come on and the band begins to play," Sapulpa coach Trandy Burch, who has faced Jenks 22 times, said. “With that offensive line, it didn’t matter if Knute Rockne was coaching. And that’s not to down-play Allan. Those guys are built to succeed.”
Over the weekend more allegations have been revealed concerning other players who have graduated. The rules violations – involving seven players dating to 1998 – included illegal recruiting and monetary gifts.
“To me, it’s a complete shock,” Daniel Cameron of the Jenks Gazette said. “Everybody here has so much respect for Tony Dillingham and coach (Trimble). I’d say everybody in the district is shocked – except for students from (arch rival) Tulsa Union.
“Kids are resilient and they’ve got all that talent. But it probably will be from one week to the next (how they react)."
Cameron, who is a 1991 graduate of Jenks, noted that the OSSAA is meeting on Wednesday night and he fears the worst.
“I’m guessing that they will deny any postseason play,” Cameron said. “I don’t know if they’ll get the nuclear bomb and destroy the program.”
* Senior running back Josh Seidel (6-0, 197) set a school record for rushing yards (327 on 29 carries) and tied the record with six touchdowns as unbeaten Bishop McCort (Johnstown, Pa.) handed Richland its first loss, 69-35. He now shares the record of six touchdowns with his father, Dave, who died on Aug. 21 after a seven-year battle with cancer.
* Helena Capital edged previously unbeaten Great Falls C.M. Russell, 28-26, to set a Montana Class AA record with its 27th consecutive victory.
* Owings Mills (Md.) snapped a 53-game losing streak with a 12-0 victory over Loch Raven. On the reverse side, Canyon del Oro (Tucson, Ariz.) ended Scottsdale Saguaro’s 37-game winning streak with a resounding 44-0 triumph.
* Pat Mitchell, co-head coach at Cedar Falls, became the seventh Iowa coach to win 300 games with a 28-10 victory over Waterloo West. Now in his 43rd campaign, Mitchell is co-coach with Brad Remmert.
Basketball notes
Xavier Martin exploded for a record 56 points (13 3-pointers) as miramarhurricanes.com routed dauncosmetis.com, 90-45, in the Tournament of Champions Back to School Classic at Dr. Krop in Miami, Fla.
The lightning-quick, 5-foot-9 senior guard from Miramar (Fla.) erupted for 45 points in the first half and is making inroads with Division I recruiters who have to look past his height.
* In girls basketball news, Ariel Johnson, a 6-foot-5 senior at Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) has committed to the University of Georgia.
* The University of Maryland has received a commitment from 6-foot-4 senior Alicia DeVaughn of Ely (Pompano Beach, Fla.).
Sue Butz-Stavin wins No. 700
Sue Butz-Stavin became only the second field hockey coach in history to post her 700th victory when Emmaus (Pa.) defeated Owen J. Roberts, 6-3. Entering this season, the national record stood at 718.
Butz-Stavin is in her 34th year of coaching and has won two national and nine state titles. Her unbeaten team currently is co-ranked No. 1 in the country by topofthecircle.com. She coached the mothers of three of her current players.
