Ellet football coach Steve Fasig placed on leave following death of player Toshaye Pope

Akron Public Schools has placed Ellet football coach Steve Fasig on paid administrative leave following the death of a player after a team outing.

The leave is pending a full investigation, a message to parents said Monday night. An interim coach will be named. In the meantime, the other coaches will oversee practices.

The district had not previously said which coaches were present during the outing and have not outlined Fasig's role in organizing or supervising it.

“Toshaye Pope was a wonderful kid and our entire team is devastated by what happened. My heart breaks for his family, friends, and the community,” Fasig said in a statement to Beacon Journal partner News Channel 5. “I am fully cooperating with the ongoing investigation and have no further comment at this time.”

Toshaye, 14, was an incoming freshman at Early College High School and an incoming member of the Ellet football team. Early College does not have its own athletic teams, so students are permitted to play for the team of their zoned school in APS.

He died following a team outing at Melanie Lake in Springfield Township on July 21.

Toshaye's parents said they had no idea he would be at a team event at the lake when the 14-year-old, who could not swim well, went under the water for about five minutes and died two days later.

Toshaye Pope death:Parents demand answers after drowning

"Our hearts remain with the family of an incoming Early College High School student who drowned while attending a picnic with the Ellet CLC football team," a statement from Superintendent Christine Fowler Mack said. "The district has ordered a full investigation of the incident."

Toshaye's family released a statement through an attorney Tuesday after news that APS put Fasig on leave, lamenting that it took the district 19 days since their son's death to take such action.

"While the old saying, 'better late than never,' holds true here, Toshaye’s family hopes Akron Public Schools truly conducts a comprehensive investigation into the events, choices, and system failures that lead to Toshaye’sdeath," the statement said. "We all want answers – placing Coach Fasig on leave is the first step in doing so.

"Being a high school football coach is not about wins or losses – it is about using the vehicle of football to teach student-athletes life lessons, like doing the right thing, even when it is difficult to do so. Hopefully, Akron Public Schools sets a good example going forward by doing just that.”

Fasig came to Ellet after nine seasons coaching in Barberton. He was hired in April.

Contact education reporter Jennifer Pignolet at jpignolet@thebeaconjournal.com, at 330-996-3216 or on Twitter @JenPignolet.