Five months into her tenure with Florida A&M’s women’s bowling team, Capri Howard must hope the worst is behind her. The beginning couldn’t be much rockier for a first-year head coach.
Howard replaced former coach Karen Brown, who retired last year after 11 seasons with the Rattlers. The program was rocked last month when former FAMU bowler Shamoria Johnson said she was kicked off the team for prioritizing her final exams over a scheduled practice. Three other bowlers left the team in protest of Howard’s decision, which was backed by athletic director Tiffani-Dawn Sykes.
“In December 2023, Coach Howard dismissed a student-athlete from the bowling team for reasons supported by NCAA Bylaws,” Sykes said in a statement. “Though it’s always challenging to see our student-athletes dismissed, I support the decision by Coach Howard as the proper procedures were taken before the dismissal.”
Former FAMU bowler Shamoria Johnson said she was kicked off the team for prioritizing her final exams over a scheduled practice. (Adobe Stock photo)
During an interview with Roland Martin, Johnson said she asked to be excused from practice on Dec. 4 to focus on academic requirements, and the team received a group message on time management. “She sent us an email where she was stating that we needed to manage our time better,” Johnson told Martin. “And being a student-athlete, we should be able to balance our schoolwork and our academic work. So having homework or studying is not an excuse to miss practice.”
Johnson said she was dismissed from the team in a subsequent meeting with Howard and assistant athletic director Breon Hagans after reiterating she couldn’t attend the Dec. 4 practice. “Capri said that I have been disrespectful all season and that my last email was entirely disrespectful, that she no longer wishes to work with me because my energy is a cancer to the team,” Johnson said.
“So my teammates walk out with me, and as we’re walking out, Mr. Hagans calls behind us, and he says, ‘If you walk out of that door, then you won’t get your scholarship back. We can take your scholarship away.’ Everybody just kept walking because we didn’t think that was something they could do.”
Sisters Annabelle and Francesca Olay, along with Emilea Sturk, left the team in response to Johnson’s dismissal. Sykes said all former bowling team members have been awarded their athletic scholarships for the remainder of the academic year.
The FAMU bowling team is in disarray after one former player says she was released from the team when she wanted to study instead of practice. (Adobe Stock photo)
Francesca Olay told the Tallahassee Democrat they felt unsupported by the young coach – a 2021 graduate of Jackson State – during the initial team meeting in September, stating she didn’t respect their opinions. Annabelle Olay said, “From that point on, the connection was shot.”
Bowler Eva Holmes, one of only two holdovers from last season’s team, has defended Howard and disputed former teammates’ claims of mistreatment.
“Yes, we are Division I student-athletes,” Holmes posted on Instagram. “Yes, academics are (or should be) a high priority. Yes, there was a dismissal. And yes, people quit the team. However, the reasoning behind it all is not as accurate as certain individuals’ roles are being downplayed to portray the victim. On several occasions, there were very disrespectful emails sent from player to coach with all of us CC’d as an audience to bear witness.”
Holmes said Howard’s age might have played a role in how much respect she was given from players just slightly younger.
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“Without a chance to even begin shaping the future of our program, our coach was called names and disrespected regardless of her head coach status,” Holmes wrote. “This clearly reached a breaking point when the final, extremely disrespectful email was sent. Had any other athlete in any other sport sent their head coach an email like that, they’d be dismissed from the team as well, and their teammates would understand why.”
With four new bowlers joining Holmes and Spring Harris, the Rattlers finished eighth this month in the SWAC West Round-Up, the first tournament this semester. Holmes bowled a career-high 222 versus Southern. FAMU returns to action Feb. 2-4, in the SWAC East Round-Up, and has two more tournaments scheduled before the conference finals in March.
For Howard, her rookie season as a head coach can’t end soon enough.
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