UA’s Chapman part of Hoover probe

TUSCALOOSA | The University of Alabama football program and one player in particular might soon get caught up in fallout from the ongoing investigation of Hoover High School.

According to a report in the Birmingham News, a grade change made to the transcript of Crimson Tide defensive lineman Josh Chapman allowed him to meet eligibility requirements and accept his scholarship offer.

The change was “an honest mistake," said Richard Bishop, who has sued the school system over his firing as principal.

Meanwhile, Alabama is not performing an investigation because it has not been notified by Hoover of any discrepancies or alterations.

Chapman practiced with his Crimson Tide teammates Wednesday, the first day of the fall semester at Alabama.

“Due to student privacy concerns, we are not commenting on this particular case," sports information director Doug Walker said. “However, when we receive information questioning any student-athlete’s eligibility, we evaluate that information and take appropriate action according to the circumstances."

Generally, if a transcript error takes place at the high school level and is later discovered, the college or university is not considered at fault nor in danger of violating NCAA rules unless the student participates in an athletic contest after the school was notified of eligibility concerns.

According to the report, the change occurred after Chapman’s initial transcript was submitted, resulting in Alabama’s compliance office notifying Hoover that the player was unexpectedly short of meeting eligibility requirements.

Hoover counselors Cindy Bond and Marley Stephens assumed it was a mistake resulting from a rounding error with the computer system, one of 36 such problems they reported, Bishop said. The counselors then mistakenly averaged the player’s final math grade of 89 with his first-semester grade of a 90 and then rounded up, changing the grade from a B to an A.

The second transcript was filed, which apparently allowed Chapman to be approved by the NCAA Clearinghouse.

Bishop said he and Hoover Superintendent Andy Craig decided not to make a formal correction on the second transcript because Hoover made the mistake.

Craig declined to discuss individual cases but said: “If an error was made on a grade/transcript in favor of the student, as a general rule, I don’t think we would punish the student for a mistake that we made."

According to the NCAA Web site: “Once the clearinghouse has received all required documentation including a final high-school transcript for a student, they are able to produce a final certification report. If a high school sends a revised final transcript, the clearinghouse will not be able to use the changes. Instead, any changes to a student’s final high-school transcript must be approved through the initial-eligibility waiver process."

However, Chapman enrolled at Alabama during the summer, and practiced with the football team through the entire fall training camp.

Retired federal judge Sam Pointer Jr. is investigating Chapman’s transcript and other allegations at Hoover for the school system. A teacher was also allegedly pressured to give a certain grade to defensive lineman Kerry Murphy, another Alabama signee who is attending prep school after failing to qualify academically.

Tide-bits

Redshirt freshman defensive tackle Brian Motley returned to practice wearing a light cast on his right hand and wrist after having surgery last week. He wore a black jersey to signify non-contact status.

True freshman defensive lineman Nick Gentry, who is recovering from shoulder surgery, practiced without pads. Also in black, but not practicing, were senior kicker Jamie Christensen (quad) and junior tackle Cody Davis (shoulder).

With the first day of classes, 22 walk-on players joined the team, but worked without pads. An updated roster was not available.

Reach Christopher Walsh at christopher.walsh@tuscaloosanews.com or at 205-722-0196.

Material from The Associated Press was used in this report.