IHSA may probe grade change charges

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There have been few moments in Illinois high school basketball history as perfect as the last 1.6 seconds of the 2006 state championship game at Carver Arena in Peoria.

Current Chicago Bull Derrick Rose, just a junior at Simeon then, drove into the lane, elevated and nailed a jumper as time expired in overtime to give the Wolverines the Class AA state championship.

That state title could be in jeopardy now, along with the 2007 state title Rose led Simeon to the following year.

With the news of grade changing at Simeon during the 2006-07 school year, IHSA executive director Marty Hickman said his organization may investigate the situation.

"My gut reaction is it is something we ought to review and discuss with [Public League Sports Director] Calvin Davis and the other CPS officials," Hickman said.

Rose was never academically ineligible during his high school career.

Neither were his teammates who also had their grades changed, Tim Flowers and Kevin Johnson.

However, the grade change wasn't the only news in the Board of Education's Inspector General report.

The report also states that "high school staff lost the original permanent records for three of the above mentioned students athletes."

All three of those students were on the basketball team and two of them have to come from the group of Rose, Flowers and Johnson.

"It is obvious that this is worth taking a look into," Hickman said. "At this point we need to find out more information."

Simeon compiled a 66-6 record during Rose's junior and senior seasons, winning two city titles as well as the two state titles.

"You're talking about one of the greatest teams and one of the greatest players in state history," said Joe Henricksen of the City/Suburban Hoops Report. "I would hate for his legacy to be tarnished. He's handled himself so well in college and as a pro, on and off the floor. He's been a hometown hero that all of Chicago has been rooting for."

Henricksen compared the grade-changing scandal to baseball's steroid scandal.

"It¹s kind of the same thing," Henricksen said. "There are always going to be questions surrounding those dominant teams now, things we will probably never get the answer to."