BERWICK — The first time George Curry resigned as Berwick’s football coach there was a news conference at Crispin Field attended by administrators, former players and fans.
At the conclusion of the event in 2005, Curry, the winningest high school football coach in the state, received a rousing round of applause.
This time, there is a lot less fanfare.
Berwick School District superintendent Wayne Brookhart confirmed Tuesday night that Curry has submitted his letter of resignation effective the end of the 2015 high school football season.
The announcement came the same day Brookhart reopened the fieldhouse at Crispin Field. On May 12, Brookhart shut down all football operations while the district conducted an internal investigation regarding the football program.
Curry did not return a message left for him seeking comment.
“We have received a letter of resignation from (Curry) effective the end of the 2015 season,” Brookhart said. “It won’t go to the (school) board until the next regularly scheduled meeting. I am going to recommend (the board) accepts his resignation.”
The meeting is scheduled for June 8.
Curry’s resignation comes amid controversy surrounding the football program.
The investigation focused on the transfer of two student-athletes from Nanticoke Area to Berwick in April.
The investigation also looked into Curry’s treatment of players, as well as a trip to Penn State to watch a spring practice. Curry, a Berwick assistant coach, Berwick football players and two student-athletes from a neighboring school and an individual who refers to himself as a representative of George Curry attended the practice.
Brookhart declined to discuss the findings of the investigation.
“We reopened the fieldhouse and reinstated the program,” Brookhart said. “We have finished with the internal investigation, and are trying to move forward and do what is best for the kids. As time goes on the kids have to get out there and get ready.”
Even though Curry has submitted his letter of resignation and the internal investigation has come to a close, there is still the transfer case that needs to be resolved.
Because the principals from both Berwick and Nanticoke Area did not sign off on the principal-to-principal waiver, the District 2 athletic committee will conduct a hearing to determine the legality of the transfer.
It’s against PIAA rules to transfer to another school for athletic purposes. If it’s determined the transfer was for athletics, the student-athlete or athletes would be forced to sit out a year as per PIAA rules.
At a committee meeting last week, District 2 chairman Frank Majikes said he will send an email seeking availability dates for all committee members in an attempt to schedule the hearing.
Majikes noted he wanted to get the matter taken care of as quickly as possible.
