Maori Davenport v. AHSAA: High School Sports Star Fights to Play After Team USA Basketball Mistake
Earlier this year, an Alabama high school basketball star sued the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) over her one-season suspension imposed for receiving improper monetary payments. However, this is not a story of illicit or illegal money being paid by corrupt coaching assistants like we have seen in the FBI investigation of “pay for play” schemes in college basketball. Instead, this seems to be a perfect storm of innocent mistakes that may cost Ms. Maori Davenport an opportunity to play out her senior year. AL.com has done a terrific job in covering the story, which you can read about here.
Ms. Maori Davenport is an exceptional basketball player at Charles Henderson High School in Troy, Alabama. She has signed to play with Rutgers next year. In the summer of 2018, Maori played for the U18 Team USA basketball team in an international tournament in Mexico City. That November, Maori received a check from USA basketball for $857.20 for her participation in the tournament. The amateurism rule in the AHSAA handbook prohibits high school players from being paid in this way, and the punishment is a mandatory one-season suspension. The Executive Director of the AHSAA, Steve Savarese, has stated that he has no discretion to issue a less severe punishment.
The next episode of the Mo Show Live will air Wednesday, February 6th at 3:00 PM Central Time and will feature Patrick Wynn, President of the Boys and Girls Club of North Alabama. Morris and Patrick will be discussing the mission of the Club, what our local Clubs have to offer, how people can support the Club, and Patrick’s journey and career.
Patrick Wynn is a Huntsville native and has been with Boys and Girls Club since 1998 and became the President of Boys and Girls Club of North Alabama in March of 2008. Patrick is a 1993 graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi where he earned a degree in criminal justice. In March of 2013, Patrick was selected as the Executive of the Year for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Southeast Region.
The next episode of the Mo Show Live will air Wednesday, January 30th at 3:00 PM Central Time and will feature Urban Engine Executive Director Toni Eberhart. Morris and Toni will be discussing Urban Engine’s formation, how it accelerates the growth of area businesses and startups, and Toni’s career.
Toni Eberhart is an accomplished executive with specialties in strategic communications, workforce development, and advocacy for economically diverse and equitable communities in the interest of public service. Her past achievements focus on economic impact primarily within the Southeast Region of the United States spanning across diverse industries such as medicine, energy infrastructure, higher education, and federal program & policy operations. Toni is known as a distinguished leader in the evolution of robust and dynamic innovation ecosystems, often advocating for burgeoning business & technology communities in the State of Alabama.
The next episode of the Mo Show Live will air Wednesday, January 9th at 3:00 PM Central Time and will feature former long-term Huntsville City Councilman Mark Russell. Morris and Mark will be discussing his tenure on the City Council, his work as a referee in local sports, his heart attack and how that has changed his life.
Mark Russell stepped down November 5th, 2018, after serving 16 years on the Huntsville City Council. He was elected by the council to serve as its President an unprecedented 10 times. Mark’s ten terms is a testament to the respect his colleagues have for him and his ability to unify the city. During his time on the Council, Mark helped oversee transformative growth for the City of Huntsville, including significant economic development and population increases.
The next episode of the Mo Show Live will air Wednesday, December 19th at 6:00 PM Central Time and will feature Brian Gossett, Jason Nash, and Chad Flatt, all former football players at Maryville College, along with Morris Lilienthal. Morris, Brian, Jason, and Chad will be will discussing the impact of athletics on a young person’s life, the life lessons learned through athletics, the current state of high school football, and more.
Brian Gossett is an offensive line coach at Alcoa High School in Alcoa, Tennessee, as well as an advanced placement (AP) social studies teacher. Alcoa is a dominant 3A high school football program, having won their 17th Tennessee state championship earlier this year.
The next episode of the Mo Show Live will air Wednesday, December 5th at 3:00 PM Central Time and will feature Glenn Detulleo, Head Coach of the Huntsville Havoc hockey team. Morris and Glenn will be discussing the rise of hockey in North Alabama, his coaching philosophy, the ups, and downs of coaching a professional sports franchise and Glenn’s story of how he came to Huntsville.
Glenn Detulleo is a former Havoc player and led the team to an SPHL President’s Cup victory last season. Glenn played college hockey at Iowa State before playing professionally for eleven years. In 2013 he was inducted into the American Collegiate Hockey Association Hall of Fame. Glenn was born in Timmins, Ontario, Canada but he and his family have made Huntsville their home.
