Broken Promises: Inside a Semi-Pro Nightmare, Part Seven

Broken Promises: Inside a Semi-Pro Nightmare, Part Seven

August 29, 2016 by Terrance Biggs

In the previous installments, we’ve seen player testimony, eyewitness viewpoints and streams of documents. Part Seven will offer the viewpoint of RPFL coaches/administration. Players need to have all the facts before committing to a league.

Rick Kaderly is a football lifer that lives for the game. He’s committed decades of his life to the sport. Kaderly coaches high school football in Northeast Ohio. He thought the RPFL was an opportunity to expand his horizons, accepting the general manager position with the Akron Blaze.

Q: What was the player pay scale?

Kaderly: Players were initially told they were to be paid 250 dollars per game. That number quickly decreased to 100. Soon after that amount dropped to twenty and then zero dollars. Quentin quickly found out that the huge numbers he threw out were not going to happen for player.

 

Q: Were there any other promises the RPFL made?

Kaderly: The league promised room and board for at least a couple players. When the lease needed signing, the RPFL decided to back out, citing no real reason. These players were driving from the middle of Ohio, which is not close.

 

Q: At what point, do you feel Quentin Hines changed?

Kaderly: Easy. When it was time to start paying people, everything shifted. His demeanor appeared to change rapidly. Money, or lack of, does influence people.

 

Q: Can you describe the draft process.

Kaderly: The entire event was a complete nightmare. For 6-8 hours players would walk across a stage, shake Quentin’s hand and hustle off stage in a hurry. That is where these “agents” lurked. I had to elbow a few out of the way to take care of the players.

 

Q: How qualified did the agents appear to you?

Kaderly: To be honest, not at all. This was a group of 8-10 men waiting backstage. Something seemed off. These so-called agents lacked the necessary qualifications. These kids, fresh off of being drafted were mobbed by the agents. The pressure for the players to immediately sign representation contracts was ridiculous. There is no way anyone should immediately sign over 20 percent of their income. (Which many did not make)

 

Q: In an earlier installment, Phil Ferguson gave his account of the injury. How accurate was it?

Kaderly: I was there that day, and I’ve never seen an injury like that in all of my years of football. We thought it was a high ankle sprain, at first. It wasn’t. Thankfully, Phil recovered and did not lose his leg.

 

Q: Outside of money, what was your biggest gripe with the RPFL?

Kaderly: The general lack of professionalism shocked me. Here’s an example: The league did not have enough equipment for us. League officials actually walked into an opponent’s locker rooms and borrow a player’s pants. Some of the pants were used by multiple teams, unwashed and redistributed. That is not how to run a league. What other organization requires the sharing of basic equipment?

Q: In your opinion, how did your relationship with Quentin Hines devolve?

Kaderly: When money was due, Hines’ mood changed. When I would try and call him on his foolishness, he’d attempt to hijack the conversation. If he is pressed on accountability, he would leave altogether (Note: In an upcoming installment, this point becomes clear)

 

John Mick was the defensive coordinator for the Akron Blaze. He paints a similar picture. Mick actually reached out to Hines concerning this series, citing player concern.

Q: When did you start to sense something wasn’t right with the RPFL?

Mick: I started sensing something was wrong when we asked a lot of questions about pay, health insurance and practice field time all for our players, and got runaround answers. We understood a new organization would have kinks and issues, but not these basic things.

 

Q: How were the players treated by Hines?

Mick: At first, players were treated OK by Hines. He was a pro athlete, so most of the athletes assumed he knew what he was doing. They were all told he had other NFL players and previous scouts in on the funding. The scouts he had were not certified, no law degrees and just wanted these players to “sign” with his agents. I’m not sure the percentage but I’m not sure what you can get out of players that didn’t earn a dime.

 

Q: Did you ever see or hear of Hines bouncing checks?

Mick: I know Coventry High school (where I coached high school football) was not paid for use of the field. It was embarrassing for Coach Hutt and me, who coached at Coventry and had people there who trusted us. We gave our word Hines would pay, and he never did.

 

Q: Why did you leave?

Mick: I left because our season was cut short. I finished my “contract” like a man and a professional.

 

Q: How did the Blaze experience affect your career?

Mick: The Blaze experience hurt my career and my reputation. I was a high school coach, spent 11 years in the US Navy and my word was my bond. I haven’t coached anywhere since. My goal was to coach at a higher level. When coach Hutt approached me to be his Defensive Coordinator, I jumped at the opportunity. I wanted to help local athletes get the chance most of them deserved. I worked hard on and off the field, helping sell tickets to the community, and received no compensation for it. After we were told we weren’t getting paid and our season was going to be cut short, mainly because I wanted to keep my word to my team that I would try everything to get them to the next level. The Blaze team had a brotherhood. We knew after week 1 what this was about for Hines: money. And most of us stayed because we told the community we were professionals and giving up is not what professionals do. I’ve now just been coaching my kids the way football should be taught and hope to get a chance to coach at the high school level again or higher. I’m willing to do it for little to no pay because I love the game and love to coach. I’d like to think those players trusted me and that’s all you want as a coach.

 

Q: Do you have any advice for prospective RPFL players?

Mick: Check the resources of the organization. If it’s a startup, there will be issues of course. If you love the game do it for the love. As far as the RPFL goes, I would only be a part of that if the owner would admit he was in the wrong, took money and paid it all back to every player, coach and school that he used. It’s sad that this happened from an ex New England Patriot, Akron Zip and Cincinnati Bearcat player. You think you can trust people, but you can’t.

As far as I’m concerned, this ruined my young coaching career. But I did make some great friendships along the way. I still talk to some of the players. It was a great group of guys. I wish them the best.

 

Integrity is the hallmark of most reputable organization. Remember Hines’ “press conference”?

Mick: The woman speaking is his assistant, who did a lot of the planning of events. The other guy is a “scout”. No background experience or law degree. He just had those people there to ask questions.