UIL denies North Crowley’s appeal to grant eligibility to transfer quarterback
The UIL state executive committee denied North Crowley’s appeal regarding the eligibility of junior quarterback Jacob Torres via teleconference Thursday.
The UIL upheld a District 3-6A executive committee ruling that Torres had transferred for athletic purposes.
Torres played last season at Burleson Centennial, earning District 7-5A Division I Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors after passing for more than 2,000 yards.
The meeting started with the committee discussing Torres’ house being struck by lightning on Dec. 28. The residence was uninhabitable, and the family found temporary housing within North Crowley High School’s attendance zone, with assistance from their insurance, Antonio Torres, Jacob’s father, said.
Jacob Torres’ family withdrew him from Centennial on Jan. 13, and he enrolled the next day at North Crowley.
The family considered moving back to the residence once it became habitable, but Antonio Torres said he decided it was best to put the house on the market and relocate.
Burleson ISD would have let Torres commute from his residence at North Crowley, Burleson ISD athletic director Kevin Ozee said.
Antonio Torres was accused of calling Burleson head coach Phillip Tanner to see if the Elks had an opening at quarterback while his son was enrolled at Centennial. Torres denied the accusation, saying he reached out for other advice.
Former Burleson Centennial head coach Kyle Geller said Antonio Torres called him after the Spartans’ season ended, and Torres said he wasn’t sure if the team had enough weapons for his son to reach his full potential.
After that conversation, Geller called Jacob Torres into his office to see if he planned to stay at Centennial. Geller said Jacob Torres expressed concern with Centennial’s talent level heading into the 2025 season. At that point, Geller removed Jacob Torres from football, which also removed his first-period class.
Antonio Torres said he had multiple disagreements with Geller and emphasized that his son was being punished and bullied because of his personal conflicts.
North Crowley head coach Ray Gates elected to speak and mentioned that Jacob Torres was enrolled at North Crowley as a freshman. Gates said Torres’ family has spent 17 years within the community.
Gates said Geller called him, saying he was contemplating whether or not to sign off on Torres’ transfer to North Crowley. Gates said Geller told him he did not sign off on the transfer because he was afraid of backlash from the community and Burleson ISD.
“The only person I see in this situation is the kid,” Gates said. “And he didn’t do anything wrong. He is in a situation where it’s not his fault — any aspect of this. He is a kid. Whenever [Geller] called him into a room, it was him and his offensive coordinator. And I know he said that he felt like he was kinda pushed into a corner when they asked, ‘Are you going to be here?’
“When Coach Geller told me about that situation, he said Jacob didn’t give him an answer. And by not giving him an answer, he felt like he had his answer.”
UIL state executive committee chairman Mike Motheral then made the committee’s intentions clear. He said that the character of the student-athlete has nothing to do with the decision to appeal, in most cases.
“It’s about the parent,” Motheral said. “You can call that retaliation, if you want to. I don’t see most of them being that way. It’s just a fact — that the parents are the ones that have the rights and the opportunities, if you will, to change a kid. To move a kid.”
The parent, however, does not receive the punishment.
Jacob Torres, a talented QB with the potential to play college football, will not be allowed to play his junior season.
To end the meeting, the committee questioned Antonio Torres about his disagreements with Geller. Antonio Torres then summarized his claims, saying Geller had signed off on athletes in similar situations in the past.
“We moved for only one reason,” Antonio Torres said. “The fire displaced us. When they say it’s going to take time, close to a year, you don’t really have time to really adjust, and you just have to make what is best and safe for your family. ... We only followed the UIL rules to zone and put my son in where we live.”
The executive committee vote to deny the appeal was unanimous.
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