While everyone's searching for answers to clarify the past, Booker is desperate to look toward the future. Principal Jamal Crook and head coach Lance Hoeltke held a press conference at Booker High on Thursday, Aug. 13, discussing the future of Tornadoes football after Crook announced on Facebook on Wednesday, Aug. 12 that it wouldn't have a varsity football season. The news follows Carlos Woods' dismissal in mid-July as the school's football head coach and athletic director after one season. Woods has since resigned as a Sarasota County Schools employee. Since his dismissal, over 21 players have left the program that has appeared in three straight state semifinals. Woods is being criminally investigated by the Sarasota Police Department, which is still ongoing. On Tuesday, July 12, Booker was sent an official letter by the FHSAA after allowing eighth graders to practice with upperclassmen during spring practice. Booker was fined $500, and Woods was suspended from coaching the preseason game. He was dismissed before he could serve his suspension. "I think the focus is where we are as a football program today and how we're going to move forward," Crook said, who became the new principal on June 1. "There's a lot of information I just simply don't know about the past. I'm here to focus on the future." Crook would not comment on why Woods was removed from his positions at the school.
When asked what the problem at Booker was, Crook said that the football team is "rebuilding" and they're "focused on player development." He said there's "no problem as it relates to the larger circumstances." Hoeltke was hired on July 29. During the press conference, the head coach said he's become more familiar with Booker and its community over the last two years. Hoeltke's 8-year-old son runs on a track club team run by Sheldon Cantrell, Booker's track & field coach. "When I got the word of the opportunity, I prayed about it," Hoeltke said while choking up, "I talked to my wife about it and I said, 'I'm going to be a part of the solution.' And I believe that I can." But Hoeltke also said he knew what he was getting into after the last month at Booker. "I was not naive," Hoeltke said. "I knew exactly what I am getting into. I'm ready for the challenge. I want to be a part of the solution. I'm honored for the opportunity. I see opportunity here. I see a tremendous amount of potential."
Hoeltke did not specify the number of players on his team, but said many staff members from last season are returning. Hoeltke said that Booker football "is building each day" and "that players are starting to show up" after beginning practice on Monday, Aug. 10. He said that chemistry has already been built over the team's eight practices so far. He said deciding to only have a JV team "boiled down to readiness of the kids who are playing," as the program was worried about competitive balance and unnecessary risk. "The first step is we have to stabilize," Hoeltke said. "We gotta stabilize and do right by these young men who have chosen to play. My goal is to protect them and make sure that they have a good experience, and that their safety is considered first as a parent and then as their coach." The FHSAA said Booker will face no penalties for not fielding a team as long as its cancelled varsity games are a joint decision between the schools. Crook said "there are some answers he still doesn't quite know," when asked how previously scheduled district matches will be handled. "The contractual agreements between Booker and their opponents needs to be worked out and agreed upon between the parties," FHSAA spokesperson Jessica Eley wrote in an email. "If any of the games become forfeits, then Booker can potentially be penalized for the 2027-28 season per policy 4. But not if those schools agree to cancel the games." This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Amid Booker football turmoil, principal and new coach desperate for future