Camas football coaches are cleared of recruiting violations

The day after their recruiting suspensions had been lifted; Jon Eagle and Dan Kielty couldn’t wait to get back to work.

More than 170 Camas High School students, and incoming freshmen, gathered for spring practice at Cardon Field. For the first time a month, Eagle and Kielty could finally concentrate on football.

“I appreciate even more now the support from the Camas community and the Camas School District,” Eagle said. “We just want to get back to playing football.”

Eagle and Kielty faced three game suspensions for recruiting violations dating back to a meeting Eagle had with a student athlete from another school March 14.

Although Camas Athletic Director Rory Oster said this meeting should have never taken place, he has always stood by Eagle’s statement that he didn’t try to recruit the athlete.

The Washington State Interscholastic Activities Association’s district directors gave Eagle and Kielty the opportunity to share the details of the meeting with the athlete and his grandfather Thursday.

Oster said Eagle advised the student to fulfill the commitment to his current team by playing out his senior year at his current high school. Once the WIAA was able to confirm Eagle’s statement with the athlete’s grandfather, they lifted all of the penalties on Eagle, Kielty and the Camas School District.

“We are very grateful the district directors took the time to ask all the questions that needed to be answered and get the facts,” Oster said. “Nobody here actually thought Eagle and Kielty committed a WIAA violation. It’s unfortunate they had to go through this, but the support from kids, coaches, teachers and the administrative staff never wavered.”

The CHS football and athletic programs are not completely in the clear yet. On Friday, Southwest Washington District 4 co-directors Tim Graham and Tim Trimble requested for the WIAA Executive Board to review the decision to overturn the violations.

Read more in Tuesday’s print edition of the Post-Record.