Florida Gators sophomore receiver Antonio Callaway may have received a favorable decision last Friday in a Title IX hearing but his future remains in limbo.
Callaway was found “not responsible” following a student code of conduct hearing that took place earlier this month. The complainant in the case, and her attorney, boycotted the hearing citing bias in the university’s selection of Jake Schickel as the hearing officer. In Schickel’s ruling, both Callaway and the complainant stated that Callaway was high on the night in question. Callaway is quoted in the ruling as saying he “was so stoned (he) had no interest in having sex with anyone.” This leads to questions about Callaway’s future with the team. The sophomore was cleared to come back to campus after nearly six months away from the team, for “Summer B” classes, as well as returning to practice. His status as far as being eligible for the season, as well as questions about the admission that he was smoking marijuana, have been left unanswered.
Speaking with the media for the first time since the ruling, Jim McElwain wasn’t able to offer up with any certainty the answers to those questions. He declined to answer if Callaway would be eligible for the Gators September 3 season opener against UMass.
“That’s one of those deals that, obviously I can’t (comment), like the university can’t,” McElwain said. “I’m part of the university and I kind of follow their lead.”
In a statement released by the University, they cited federal and state confidentiality laws.
“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.”
The complainant has 10 days from the ruling to file an appeal, something her attorney has said they will not pursue. From that standpoint, Callaway should be clear of this situation and McElwain now wants to focus on turning this into a teaching situation.
“Part of our job is to help educate. If there are some issues, find help. If it becomes habitual, then there are some consequences,” said McElwain. “At the same time, through the stuff we do. Through the education piece, I’m here to help him. And I’m here to make sure if there something there that isn’t a one-off but obviously is something that is going to be a huge problem, which you’re obviously aware of some of the cases here over the years that have missed some things because of those details. I truly am here to help these guys learn, grow, become better fathers when they grow up, help society and help their communities.”
McElwain pointed out that, in his opinion, Callaway has already been through a lot. Callaway was suspended in January and not allowed on campus or around his teammates. That took away a big support group that Callaway had in the coaching staff and team, something McElwain helps in the education process.
The season opener is just over two weeks away and the Gators don’t know if it will have its only proven playmaker on offense available to them when they kickoff the new season. In the meantime, McElwain will do his part as a coach and an educator, while likely dealing with the same frustrations that fans are dealing with facing an uncertain future.
“There was a lot of time there, a lot of time to sit and think and really look deep down inside of you and say what am I learning from,” McElwain said of Callaway’s absence. “So, what I have I seen? I think time will tell.”