McKeesport school board set to vote on future of football coaching staff amid controversy
The school board in McKeesport is set to vote tonight on the future of its high school football team's coaching staff amid a controversy that involves a local church and a murder trial.
The board called a special meeting on Wednesday to discuss a motion by member Matt Holtzman not to renew the assistant coaches. There is no motion to relieve head coach Matt Miller of his duties.
The meeting comes one day after Brandon Short, a McKeesport football legend, called on Miller to step down. Short's outrage stems from an assistant football coach and the head of the football booster organization testifying as character witnesses for Isaac Smith, who was convicted of murdering his daughter, Karli Short, and his unborn grandchild in 2021.
"No one separated the program and the school from what those men said on the stand," Brandon Short told KDKA-TV on Tuesday. "And when the head coach doesn't speak, the silence gets filled. It reads like McKeesport football does support Isaac Smith, who killed my daughter."
Joe Smith, an assistant coach who is not related to Isaac Smith, and Josh Lefcowitz, the head booster, testified in court as character witnesses. All three are members of the Church of Life in Christ, a controversial church whose congregants were in the courtroom on behalf of Isaac Smith during the trial. Matt Miller is the son of Guy Miller, the pastor of the church.
Brandon Short said this is not about "punishing anyone for their religion or their affiliation with the church."
"The head coach failed as a leader and should resign," Brandon Short told KDKA-TV on Tuesday. "Because I've heard no condolences. No, 'This doesn't represent McKeesport football or the high school. We're sorry for your loss.' There's been nothing, and it's not acceptable to me. And it shouldn't be acceptable to the community."
Sources told KDKA-TV earlier this month that Matt Miller informed the school's athletic director that he was resigning, but he rescinded his decision. While some members of the board told KDKA-TV they're wary of a coaching shake-up, Dave Seropian, the board's president, has thrown his support behind Matt Miller, saying the head coach "has never done anything that's intertwined with the church."
Brandon Short had requested to speak before the board on Wednesday, but that request was denied.
