FB: College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin

[AO]

The state's attorney's office and Judge Telander recognized that Ben Pettway was the least culpable of the indicted players and treated him as such, and Pettway's lawyer has a good point that it's a shame that Pettway's virtual exoneration doesn't erase the stain of his arrest in the public mind. But his reputation should not be viewed in the same light as those of his four former teammates. They will go through life with criminal records. He won't.

Was Pettway that much less involved in the incident?  The only quote I could find from the judge.

"(Pettway) was an honor student in high school and in college. In this incident, he immediately took responsibility by reporting the incident," Judge Telander said. "In my eyes, he stands apart from the others."

I don't think that should make him stand apart much at all.  Either they all injured Mr. Nagy or they didn't. 

[AndOne]

Benjamin Pettway entered what is called an Alford Plea. This is a little used legal maneuver in which a defendant proclaims he is innocent of the crime, but admits prosecutors have enough evidence to convict him beyond a reasonable doubt, and thus pleads guilty-usually to a lesser charge. In this case Pettway was originally charged with felonies, but used an Alford Plea to plead guilty to a reduced misdemeanor charge.

The pickup truck used in the incident was Pettway's. Evidently, he was the driver and did not place hands upon the victim as did the other four Wheaton football players who abducted and bound the victim, and dumped him in the pickup prior to his being driven to and dumped on a baseball field.

The judge, as Greg Sager indicated, accepted the plea arrangement as he felt Pettway was not without fault, but was "less culpable" than the other 4 players charged.

Lastly, with regard to the difference in charges—Kyler Kregal, Noah Spielman, and Samuel TeBos pled guilty to the charge of misdemeanor battery. James Cooksey pled guilty to misdemeanor unlawful restraint. These are crimes against the PERSON which are considered more serious than the crime of misdemeanor disorderly conduct to which Ben Pettway pled guilty and which is akin to a breach of the general PEACE as opposed to inflicting injury on a PERSON.

[Gregory Sager]

Exactly. Read the article to which hazzbeen linked, AO.  It indicates that Pettway was charged with a Class C misdemeanor (misdemeanor disorderly conduct, as AndOne indicated), which is the most common and least serious misdemeanor charge in Illinois. The maximum penalty for a Class C misdemeanor conviction is 30 days in jail and/or a $1,500 fine.

His four former teammates were charged with Class A misdemeanors, and Class A is the most serious class of misdemeanor offenses in Illinois. A Class A misdemeanor conviction can result in a year in jail and a $2,500 fine.

[AO]

I guess what I'm saying then is if Nagy was not injured then I would give equal blame to all 5 for the hazing since I believe driving the truck is as bad as gently restraining Nagy. 

Whether it was Class A or Class C, didn't all 5 get community service and no jail?  Even if you were sure you were very gentle with Nagy, it's easy to see why taking the community service and putting it behind you would be an attractive choice.   That punishment fits the crime pretty well and even if you win at trial you probably won't sway the general public opinion unless Nagy admits he was lying about when the injury occurred.

[Gregory Sager]

I guess what I'm saying then is if Nagy was not injured then I would give equal blame to all 5 for the hazing since I believe driving the truck is as bad as gently restraining Nagy.

What you believe and what the law code of the state of Illinois says are obviously two completely different things. And I need to point out that your use of the adjective "gently" indicates an unproven assertion on your part that Nagy submitted meekly and agreeably to being bound and abducted and that thus no force at all was needed by his abductors.

Whether it was Class A or Class C, didn't all 5 get community service and no jail? Even if you were sure you were very gentle with Nagy, it's easy to see why taking the community service and putting it behind you would be an attractive choice. That punishment fits the crime pretty well and even if you win at trial you probably won't sway the general public opinion unless Nagy admits he was lying about when the injury occurred.

I have no idea how much community service each of the five of them did, but that's pretty irrelevant to the main point here, which is this: Cooksey, Kregel, Spielman, and TeBos now have criminal records, and Pettway does not. That is not a negligible difference in outcome at all, especially for a kid from an upper-middle-class background (or, at least in one case, a genuinely wealthy background) who attended an expensive and prestigious college and who thus probably had a lot of expectations for his future status in society.

Pettway may have to deal with some local opprobrium there in the Chattanooga area for now, and those with long memories in his hometown are going to be capable of embarrassing him. But, by and large, what he did will soon be forgotten by everybody but himself and his immediate family (and by Nagy and the other four defendants). When seeking employment he will be able to submit his résumé and walk into an interview without fear. And if somebody does an Internet search of him and brings up his past legal problem, he can confidently point to the fact that all of the charges against him were dismissed and that he has a clean record.

But things will be different for Cooksey, Kregel, Spielman, and TeBos. They will not be able to completely put it behind them the way that Pettway can. Their convictions will stick to them like tar for the rest of their lives, unless they're able to get the conviction sealed or expunged, which, as I indicated earlier, is tough in Illinois. While none of them will be dragging around a metaphorical ball and chain, nevertheless, certain exclusive doors in life will be closed to them that will not be closed to Pettway -- or, at the very least, they will have obstacles to overcome in those certain endeavors that will not exist for Pettway.

Your belief:

I don't think that should make him stand apart much at all.  Either they all injured Mr. Nagy or they didn't.

... is not shared by the legal system of the state of Illinois.

[AO]

I guess what I'm saying then is if Nagy was not injured then I would give equal blame to all 5 for the hazing since I believe driving the truck is as bad as gently restraining Nagy.

What you believe and what the law code of the state of Illinois says are obviously two completely different things. And I need to point out that your use of the adjective "gently" indicates an unproven assertion on your part that Nagy submitted meekly and agreeably to being bound and abducted and that thus no force at all was needed by his abductors.

Nothing about this was proven.  Nagy can make his assertions and I can make mine. 

I have no idea how much community service each of the five of them did, but that's pretty irrelevant to the main point here, which is this: Cooksey, Kregel, Spielman, and TeBos now have criminal records, and Pettway does not. That is not a negligible difference in outcome at all, especially for a kid from an upper-middle-class background (or, at least in one case, a genuinely wealthy background) who attended an expensive and prestigious college and who thus probably had a lot of expectations for his future status in society.

The articles I found said everybody did between 50-100 hours of community service and wrote an 8 page essay.  I guess we'll have to wait and see how it affects any of them in the future.  I'm hopeful they can move past it.

[Gregory Sager]

I guess what I'm saying then is if Nagy was not injured then I would give equal blame to all 5 for the hazing since I believe driving the truck is as bad as gently restraining Nagy.

What you believe and what the law code of the state of Illinois says are obviously two completely different things. And I need to point out that your use of the adjective "gently" indicates an unproven assertion on your part that Nagy submitted meekly and agreeably to being bound and abducted and that thus no force at all was needed by his abductors.

Nothing about this was proven.  Nagy can make his assertions and I can make mine. 

The difference between your belief that all five defendants deserve equal blame and the conclusions reached by the legal arm of the state is proven. The facts are plain -- Pettway was in a separate category than the other four in the eyes of the law.

As for your use of the term "gently", you're right that your assertion was neither proven nor disproven. But you have neither evidence nor, I'm pretty sure, any special knowledge of the case to bolster your assertion. And there's plenty of room between your claim that the four assailants treated Nagy gently and Nagy's claim that they injured him to the point of requiring surgery.

I have no idea how much community service each of the five of them did, but that's pretty irrelevant to the main point here, which is this: Cooksey, Kregel, Spielman, and TeBos now have criminal records, and Pettway does not. That is not a negligible difference in outcome at all, especially for a kid from an upper-middle-class background (or, at least in one case, a genuinely wealthy background) who attended an expensive and prestigious college and who thus probably had a lot of expectations for his future status in society.

The articles I found said everybody did between 50-100 hours of community service and wrote an 8 page essay.  I guess we'll have to wait and see how it affects any of them in the future.  I'm hopeful they can move past it.

The eight-page-essay penalty was obviously imposed by the college, not by the state of Illinois. Wheaton also imposed the 50-hours-of-community-service penalty, which may have been deemed sufficient punishment by the state for the other four as it was for Pettway.

There's no moving past it in their immediate futures, because the issue now turns from a criminal matter into a civil matter. Wheaton College has settled Nagy's lawsuit against it out of court, but that suit still remains open on Nagy's behalf against the five former players -- and Pettway has lodged a counterclaim against Nagy, likely based on the assertion by Pettway's lawyer that Nagy was not truthful about why surgery was required on his shoulder. As long as the civil case drags out, this is still going to be an issue for everybody involved.

I have no reason at all to bear any ill will towards Cooksey, Kregel, Spielman, and TeBos, and I, too, hope that they will be able to move past this mess once the civil suit is over. But it's not realistic to assume that this will never affect their futures and that the conclusion of the civil suit will be the end of the matter for them, once and for all. We simply don't know. As you said, we'll have to wait and see.

[Titan Q]

Article about IWU's football recruits...

https://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-wesleyan/iwu-s-eash-likes-quantity-quality-of-recruiting-class/article_9cd88051-9c50-5aeb-a7e7-c174573b0c46.html?utm_content=buffer3d700&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=LEEDCC&fbclid=IwAR3l8z7aXlfn6tjjZJmn4NrbGlFDqxt6O86q03afZoiOQ8LRkdBBZj4Y628

[USee]

Article about IWU's football recruits...

https://www.pantagraph.com/sports/college/illinois-wesleyan/iwu-s-eash-likes-quantity-quality-of-recruiting-class/article_9cd88051-9c50-5aeb-a7e7-c174573b0c46.html?utm_content=buffer3d700&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=LEEDCC&fbclid=IwAR3l8z7aXlfn6tjjZJmn4NrbGlFDqxt6O86q03afZoiOQ8LRkdBBZj4Y628

That Spiller kid is going to end up a kicker with that smile. That's no LB profile pic.

[izzy stradlin]

Tyler Sigler is getting a contract with the Cardinals.   Noted at the bottom of the article below:

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001030589/article/dolphins-sign-exbengals-rb-mark-walton-after-tryout

[npbaseball40]

According to head coach Kyle Rooker and Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com, North Park football's David Simmons, Jr. has signed to the 90-man roster.

Full story below:
https://athletics.northpark.edu/news/2019/5/12/football-simmons-signs-with-new-orleans-saints-following-successful-rookie-camp.aspx

[Gregory Sager]

Fingers crossed for David. I'm hoping that his special-teams expertise gives him the edge in making the Saints' regular-season roster.

[markerickson]

The Saints may scale back the roles of superfreak Taysom Hill to backup QB only, which opens a very slim opportunity for a Viking known to excel on special teams.

[79jaybird]

I didn't realize I was on the d3hoops chatboard.  This is more appropriate for football-

Sympathies and condolences to Coach Mack.  He was a good man.

Area high school football has lost an icon.

Former Crystal Lake Central coach Bill Mack died Saturday night with many of his family members present at Sunrise of Crystal Lake, an assisted living facility. Mack had been battling dementia and Parkinson's disease. He was 82.



Mack was 122-57 in 20 seasons at Central and was inducted into the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He became almost as well known later in life as a mentor to high school coaches, particularly with his expertise in triple-option football.

"As far as my career goes, he changed the direction of everything," said Prairie Ridge coach Chris Schremp, who is 142-53 in 17 seasons with three Class 6A state championships. "He taught me the option offense. That was the turning point of the Prairie Ridge program. I would go to Bill's house twice a week and sit at his kitchen table from 3 to 6 p.m. He went through everything so meticulously. I'd leave his house with a headache, but that's the way Coach was."

Mack is survived by his wife, Cheryl; two sons, Bill Jr. and Andy; and a daughter, Beth; along with their families. Mack was selected as recipient of the Northwest Herald Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017.

"It's amazing," Bill Mack Jr. said. "Everybody I talked to, ex-assistant coaches, ex-players, they all said the same thing. He was a very inspirational and motivational human being. He really got to know his players. I had somebody ask me this week how he was doing, and this guy didn't even play football for him. But Dad would stop and talk to him and helped him in other ways.

"He's blessed now he doesn't have to deal with that stuff. He wasn't [like] 'The Coach' anymore."




After coaching at Central, Mack coached several years at the college level. That was where he eventually became an expert on the option.

Mack mentored former Cary-Grove coach Bruce Kay, current C-G coach Brad Seaburg, along with Schremp and many others. Former Richmond-Burton coach J. Randy Hofman was a close friend and worked on Mack's staff at North Central College in Naperville.

"He was a tremendous influence on many of the things we did as far as the program and football strategy," Kay said. "He was just a great friend. He is such a smart person and had the ability to explain things in a simple way you could understand. He was a great teacher."




Kay said he and Mike Noll, the former McHenry and current R-B coach, had planned to visit Mack this week.

"Bill was always up at 5 in the morning, so if I was up early, I could call him [with a question] and he would pick up," Kay said.

Kay's 2009 team won the Class 6A state championship. Seaburg's team won it again last season. The Trojans have played in three other title games since 2004. Kay, Seaburg and Schremp always gave a nod to Mack for helping them reach the pinnacle.




"People don't realize how many coaches he helped out," Schremp said. "I would always tell him that he should have started 1-800-BILL-MACK because so many coaches called to pick his brain. He never quit studying football. That was something I hope I can keep, that mindset, and I hope I can do something like that for other coaches down the line."

[npbaseball40]

Here's a feel-good moment for NPU and the CCIW:

David Simmons, Jr. made the lone interception of the day against Ohio State grad J.T. Barrett at Saints' OTAs this past Thursday. Full story below.

https://athletics.northpark.edu/news/2019/5/25/football-simmons-draws-attention-of-media-coach-payton-with-interception-at-otas.aspx

Coach Payton is from Naperville and an EIU grad, so he had a bit of knowledge about the league and name-dropped a few schools.