PREP SPORTS SPOTLIGHT
In one season under Nate Hooks the MCC Hustlers moved up 266 spots in the state rankings and finished the season with a 9-3 overall record and a district championship title.
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Melbourne Central Catholic fired head football coach Nate Hooks earlier this week for allegedly violating rules during his multi-game suspension by the Florida High School Athletic Association, which he began serving in October.
In October of last year, MCC spokesperson Tessie Wilkie said Coach Hooks allegedly violated policy 37.1.1 against improperly contacting players, which says the following:
“No school employee, athletic department staff member, representative of the school’s athletic interests or third parties, such as an independent person, business or organization, may make contact, either in person or through any form of written or electronic communication or through any third party, with a student, or any member of the student’s family, in an effort to pressure, urge or entice the student to attend a different school for the purpose of participating in interscholastic athletics.”
These allegations came up amid the best single-season turnaround in Melbourne Central Catholic’s history. The two seasons before Hooks’ arrival, the MCC Hustlers had a cumulative record of 3-17. In 2022 the team was ranked 554th out of 576 teams in the state of Florida.
In one season under Hooks, the Hustlers moved up 266 spots in the state rankings and finished the season with a 9-3 overall record and a district championship title.
Hooks’ dismissal this week stemmed from attending a home MCC boys basketball game Nov. 29, five days after the Hustler’s football season ended. Hooks, who said he was unaware of violating the terms of his suspension by attending the game, was acknowledged by MCC Athletic Director Johnmichael Thistle during the game but was not informed his attendance was a breach of the FHSAA rules.
Hooks said it wasn’t until Jan.8 that Thistle told him it was a violation of the rules of his suspension to attend any FHSAA sanctioned game until the 2023 prep football season concluded – including the state playoffs – on Dec. 9.
Hooks’ attorney Jonathan Templeton responded by saying the only documentation he received from either the FHSAA or MCC was a copy of the transcript of the FHSAA appeals hearing, which did not detail any prohibitions.
Hooks released the following statement when speaking to Space Coast Daily:
“The day I accepted the MCC job I didn’t bite my tongue and I didn’t stutter. I told everyone we would smash holy Trinity and end the losing streak.
I said we would be the District Champs. I said we would make a run at a State Championship. I said I would make MCC popular and relevant again, and make the alumni, parents, students, fans, community, and players proud again. We did every single thing I said we would do.
I’ve spent 34 years building relationships that have given me the ability to get 290 Full Scholarship offer for students in this county, worth over 69 million dollars. I get text messages from parents and players all the time asking can I help get them a College Scholarship because they can’t afford to pay for college.
On January 10, 2023, I was contacted by a parent and asked could I evaluate his son’s Hudl highlights. I did, and replied that his video looks good. The parent said it would mean a lot for his son’s confidence if I would DM him and tell him his video looks good. That’s the DM that the FHSAA said violated policy 37.1.1. and carried a 12-week suspension, which was reduced during the hearing to the end of the season.
The parent stated he wrote a detailed letter to MCC and to the FHSAA denying that Coach Hooks recruited his son, but no one responded to him or investigated.”
Before his time at Cocoa, Hooks was the longest-tenured head coach in Brevard County at the time after spending eight seasons with Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy, where he became the winningest coach in program history with an overall record of 48-36 and led them to their first-ever playoff win.
Hooks is the third head coach at MCC since 2018.
This is a developing story, stay tuned to Space Coast Daily for updates.
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