Michael Segovia in March of 2023. Courtesy photo.
Officials cleared James “Nikki” Rowe Head Baseball Coach Michael Segovia of any wrongdoing on April 16 after a brief suspension based on a parent complaint.
McAllen ISD placed Segovia on administrative leave in early April after a parent submitted a video of Segovia speaking with a player about athletics in the summer of 2022.
The district reinstated him April 16.
The University Interscholastic League requires coaches in Texas to abide by a variety of policies related to recruiting and player eligibility, policies Rowe ran afoul of in its basketball program earlier this year.
Substantiated violations committed by former Rowe Head Boys Basketball Coach Jose Yebra resulted in not only his suspension and removal as coach but a two-year UIL probation for Rowe’s athletics program.
UIL officials sharply criticized the district’s initial handling of complaints against Yebra at a hearing last month.
In contrast, an internal district investigation and a vote by the local UIL District Executive Committee found this week that Segovia didn’t violate any rules.
It wasn’t even particularly clear, based on the committee’s proceedings, what specific violation the parent alleged Segovia committed; only that there existed a video with audio recording of him that may have been construed as some kind of rule-breaking recruiting attempt.
Segovia said he felt he was the victim of a disgruntled parent using increased scrutiny of Rowe athletics to grind an axe against him.
“I fear this is a blatant attempt to smear my good name, tarnish my reputation and career, and humiliate my family along with the Nikki Rowe baseball team,” Segovia said April 16, audibly choking up. “She’s also attempting to damage the Nikki Rowe community’s reputation and McAllen ISD’s image given the recent UIL disciplinary actions. I have never participated nor been accused of recruiting ineligible athletes in all of my 22-year coaching career…I love my job. The opportunity to positively impact kids is always the highlight of my day.”
In a lengthy prepared statement, Segovia detailed the better part of two year’s worth of interactions with the unnamed player’s parents. He described the parents complaining about how much their child was being played and about alleged bullying, describing himself and the district as responsive to those complaints.
According to Segovia, tensions continued to escalate — at one point police were involved — but he saw allegations against him consistently disproven.
McAllen ISD administrators backed Segovia’s conduct on April 16.
“I think he’s already been through enough,” Athletic Director Brian McClenny said. “And we did our due diligence, we checked into it. And, you know, he’s got a reputation also as a standup person.”
The committee seemed to support that assessment and dismissed the allegations on April 16.
Chair Marcus Kaufman said the response to the allegations and the district even considering claims it found ultimately meritless was a product of the Yebra scandal.
“We had to do it this way because of what happened before,” he said.
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