Carter's Corner: A Message on Coverage of Callaway Case
Sunday, August 14, 2016 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The storm arrived nine days ago after months of quiet coverage. Now what?
That is the next question to be answered in the case of Gators sophomore Antonio Callaway, who emerged last season as Florida's most exciting receiver since Percy Harvin.
Are Callaway's offseason issues behind him for good? Will he play in the season opener? Does he face additional penalty?
The University of Florida allowed Callaway to return to campus and team activities at the start of the summer "B" semester. Callaway has participated in practice since the Gators opened preseason camp earlier this month.
On Friday more clarity in Callaway's situation was revealed. These cases are awkward for Florida head coach Jim McElwain and UF officials to address publicly due to federal student-privacy laws.
While attorneys are free to play ping-pong in the media in such cases to sway public opinion in favor of their client, McElwain and UF must often remain vague in what they say openly.
The same is true at colleges and universities across the country.
For example, here is the university's official response in the wake of the latest news cycle to surface surrounding Callaway's case on Friday:
"The University of Florida will not tolerate sexual misconduct and thoroughly investigates every allegation it receives through the student conduct and Title IX processes. While we want to be as transparent as possible, we cannot address rumors, media reports or misleading statements from attorneys on this subject.
We cannot confirm whether or not any allegation or student conduct investigation exists; and the university is barred from discussing specific student disciplinary cases. Federal and state law are very clear on this front and require strict confidentiality of this kind of information.
Be assured that any situation of this serious nature reported to the university is immediately addressed following Title IX regulations, U.S. Department of Education guidelines and university policies. These policies and practices support those who report sexual misconduct of any kind and ensure a fair investigation and process for the accuser and the accused beginning with the initial report and through any appeal.
Either side may elect to appeal the decision in a student conduct case. A written appeal must be received by the reviewing authority designated by the university within 10 business days of the decision. An appeal may be made on any or all of the following grounds:
- Violation of student rights
- New information or evidence (students who attend the hearing)
- Preponderance of evidence was met (accuser appeal) or was not met (accused appeal)
- Inappropriate sanctions imposed
A final decision would be made within 10 business days following receipt of the complete file and any meetings with the parties. Ultimately, the reviewing authority could require a new hearing or accept, modify or reject the decision or sanction imposed."
Meanwhile, McElwain addressed on Monday how the Callaway case has impacted his program negatively, at least in the short term.
If you are an astute observer of the Florida football program since McElwain took over in December 2014, you know player accountability has been as the top of his messaging agenda. The last distraction he wanted entering his second year is an off-the-field issue with one of Florida's key players.
"Obviously I'm not happy about any of it," McElwain said. "The impact? I guess we'll see down the road on that. But we'll fight through it."
The Gators, scheduled to conduct practices Nos. 12 and 13 of preseason camp today, have been very business-like in their approach. While Callaway's case has received significant attention outside the program the last nine days, you would not know it by the way the Gators go about practice.
The last time the Gators faced an off-the-field issue of this magnitude was in 2014 when former quarterback Treon Harris was involved in a troubling high-profile case. For those who follow our coverage of the Gators closely, you may remember a story I wrote titled "A Message to Our Readers, AKA The Gator Nation" that shared our perspective.
We have taken the same approach in regard to Callaway for many of those same reasons. I understand the thirst of Florida fans for information from our website on all-things Gators. Sometimes we must adhere to guidelines that are beyond our control.
In addition, this situation has been different from other similar high-profile cases due to various factors, which Matt Baker of The Tampa Bay Times explained well in a recent story.
However, as Callaway's predicament continues to evolve and his status gains more clarity, FloridaGators.com will try our best to update our fans.
And while, yes, the Gators have received negative attention of late for certain aspects of the case, I can assure you those of us at the University Athletic Association know there is much more positive than negative happening around the football program.
We often tell those stories but understand sometimes they get overshadowed.
While limited at times how much he can say publicly, McElwain tried to offer some perspective on Monday, his first press conference after the Callaway story exploded in the press.
"When we were made aware of whatever it was, immediate action was taken," McElwain said. "We're going by what we're given, which is whatever is going on and whatever it is. Somebody will tell me in the end."
Like the rest of us, McElwain learned more details Friday. We all should know more soon whether the case is resolved from a football standpoint, or if more is to come.
Regardless, thank you for following our coverage on FloridaGators.com and for being so passionate about the Gators.
