DeGregorio brothers ruled ineligible for basketball after transferring to North Catholic to play for father

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, September 19, 2018 | 8:03 PM

Can an athlete switch high schools and play sports for a team his father coaches?

That question split the WPIAL board on Wednesday, but ultimately the group ruled North Catholic transfers Isaac and Owen DeGregorio ineligible after a hearing for the brothers at the league office in Green Tree.

Isaac, a junior, was an all-section guard and 14-point scorer for Hampton last season. Owen is a sophomore.

The two transferred this summer from Hampton to North Catholic, where their father Dave DeGregorio was hired in April to coach boys basketball. PIAA transfer rules specifically say that athletes cannot follow a coach to another school, and it lists no exception if that coach happens to be the athlete’s parent, said WPIAL executive director Tim O’Malley.

“Were (the board members) torn because of the fact that it’s a parent? Absolutely,” O’Malley said. “Can they ignore that rule? A few of them thought so, but the majority didn’t.”

As a result, both DeGregorios were ruled ineligible in basketball for one year from their transfer date. Their father said North Catholic will appeal the decision to the PIAA.

Transfers that unite coaches and their children aren’t often blocked, DeGregorio said, particularly if the schools involved don’t contest the move.

“I think there’s a lot of precedent,” said DeGregorio, who named some other WPIAL athletes who were allowed to transfer schools and play for their fathers. “You look at Andy Podbielski (at Seneca Valley in the late 1990s), the Julas (at Center), you look at (Tyler) Bradley (to OLSH). The only thing behind all those, in my opinion, was that their home school signed off.”

The PIAA rule say a transfer is considered for athletic intent if “the student follows the student’s coach or other student-athletes to another school to which the coach or athletes have transferred or seeks to play for a particular coach or with a particular athlete due to a prior relationship with the coach or athlete (such as through club or AAU participation) or because of the reputation of the coach.”

For that reason, Hampton’s administration didn’t endorse the transfer paperwork. Dave DeGregorio was an assistant last season for Joe Lafko at Hampton.

DeGregorio said he was surprised Hampton contested the transfer.

“There’s more to (the transfer) than just my kids going there to play basketball,” he said. “It’s personal, private and family matters. I don’t want everything publicized like this was just two kids who wanted to play basketball for their dad.”

The WPIAL also ruled Vincentian Academy transfer Ethan Embleton ineligible in basketball. Embleton, a junior, transferred from Montour.

Chris Harlan is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Chris at charlan@tribweb.com or via Twitter @CHarlan_Trib.

Tags: Hampton