Sports

Keely to Attend Blue Devils' Potosi Football Game

He had been held from last week's game and practice all week for personal reasons, coach Brandon Gregory said.

running back Elijah Keely could return to the Blue Devils offense on Friday.

His absence from the team has been well noted by the community. After Keely's breakout performance against MICDS—a game where he —the freshman missed last week's and was held out of practice all week for personal reasons, coach Brandon Gregory said.

Keely will travel with the team to Potosi, but still may not play for those same reasons. But they're not residency concerns, Gregory confirmed to Maplewood-Brentwood Patch on Thursday.

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"There’s no wrong-doing going on whatsoever," Gregory said.

The Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) wasn't notified locally about any eligibility issues regarding Keely, said Don Maurer, who represents the St. Louis area on the agency's board of directors. Maurer also works as athletic director for MICDS.

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One MRH student was unenrolled by the district this year because his family lived outside of the district, communications director Tom Wickersham said. Since then, a thorough investigation showed the family took necessary residency steps, he said.

"They had a housing issue," Wickersham said. "They just made sure that they cleared up that issue."

Wickersham couldn't comment on whether the situations—Keely's personal issues and the unnamed student with residency issues—were related because of Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) concerns.

Some students have families who move in and out of the district, but Wickersham said district officials work hard to verify residency for all students in all grades, regardless if they play sports or not.

"We take this very seriously," Wickersham said. "We don't have any students on our football team right now who do not live in our school district."

While Keely is expected to travel with the Blue Devils to Potosi on Friday, junior the starting running back for the game.

Doug Miner contributed to this report.


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