GMan 3,569 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 http://www.whsv.com/home/headlines/17436214.html Harrisonburg High School Investigation Some members of the Harrisonburg High School football team are accused of armed robbery and distributing prescription pain pills. Information came out Wednesday afternoon concerning star players who are allegedly involved with the drugs, as well as allegations that the coaches knew what was going on but turned a blind eye to any illegal activity. Investigators from the Harrisonburg Police Department signed search warrants to access records at the high school. An affidavit filed with the clerk of court Wednesday alleges nine current memebrs of the school's football team, one former student, the team's head coach and two assistant coaches were involved in, or had knowledge of, the distribution of prescription pills in the school's locker room before games. Many of the pills are believed to have been Oxycontin. Investigators say some of the football players may have also been involved in an armed robbery of rival high school students on Halloween 2007. One of the students allegedly involved is the football team's star player. Ten other Harrisonburg High School students' names are also listed in the affidavit. Police executed a search warrnant at the high school Wednesday morning and got all the documents they needed. Although no arrests have been made in this case, investigators want to know how many players and coaches knew about this alleged prescription drug distribution, but who also failed to tell police. The biggest name on the list junior Alexander Owah, a star running back on the football team. Police talked to Owah more than once during this investigation. According to the affidavit, on January 23, 2008, Owah admitted to being part of an armed robbery which included other Harrisonburg High School students Ronnell Brandon and Stedman Jones. Owah said he only helped plan the robbery. On March 28, Owah was questioned again and investigators asked about his knowledge of Brandon dealing prescription pain pills before football games while in the locker room of Harrisonburg High School. In the affadavit, Owah states he was aware that Brandon had been both selling and giving away pills since the 2006-2007 football season and that Brandon had told him the pills would make it so players would feel no pain during games, even from hits by other players. Owah verbally committed to UVA in December. The Harrisonburg City School Superintendent says since this matter deals with students and personnel, he cannot comment on the matter at this time. Along with alleging that some of the coaches knew about the drugs, police also allege some of the assistant coaches may have known about the armed robbery. However, the coaches did not report it to the police. In the affidavit released Wednesday, HPD Sgt. Christoper Rush, Harrisonburg Criminal Investigations Gang Unit, says it was "very apparent that there was an overwhelming amount of information and knowledge about the use and distribution of pain pills by football players of the Harrisonburg High School football team." Rush also says that not only did the players know about this themselves, but several coaches also had this information and knowledge. In the affidavit, Rush talked with head football coach Tim Sarver. He says, "Sarver stated he had heard of Ronnell Brandon selling drugs on one occasion and on another occasion received an anonymous note that his football players were selling drugs." Sarver also says he approached Brandon about it in the spring of 2007, but that Brandon denied any involvement or knowledge. In the affidavit, Rush goes on to say that "Sarver stated that even though he had received information about Ronnell Brandon selling drugs and received a follow-up anonymous letter about it, he never reported this information to police." The affidavit also alleges that two assistant coaches, Jay Hook and David Long, had knowledge of some of these reports. Rush says Hook told him he had no knowledge of of the drug dealing, but did know about the armed robbery, which he allegedly never told police about. Rush adds Long said he had heard about the allegations and had questioned Brandon, but he "did not know where to draw the line between what was rumor and what was real." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbgfan 856 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 The drug dealing manifested in the locker room by these players is a by-product of their out-of-control lives. No discipline and apparently no parental guidance. The coaching staff, who were aware of this, turned their heads and looked the other way are as guilty as these kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW_VA_boy 495 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 Great! Another football player with UVa ties (Owah already committed to the 'Hoos) in trouble for doing something very stupid. We don't need nor want these kind of players/people in C'ville. If it takes guys like the bunch that's got arrested this summer to get to the level of Tech (which we are in arrest count) then the hell with it. I'm sure all Hoos will agree, I'd rather have 7-6 or 8-5 years with the Welsh type recruits than a ACC crown with a bunch of thugs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hokie07 11 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 [ QUOTE ] If it takes guys like the bunch that's got arrested this summer to get to the level of Tech (which we are in arrest count) then the hell with it. I'm sure all Hoos will agree, I'd rather have 7-6 or 8-5 years with the Welsh type recruits than a ACC crown with a bunch of thugs. [/ QUOTE ] Here's a lesson to all you kids out there: Don't drink Zima! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SW_VA_boy 495 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 LOL yeah I could agree with the Zima and Rock Chalk Jayhawk.... took out 2 teams and one fanbase in one year. Hokie football fans and Tar Heel bball fans. 90% of the time they're one in the same simply because most Tech fans didn't know Tech existed until Maurice DeShazo came along. Or am I giving too much benefit of the doubt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hokie07 11 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 [ QUOTE ] LOL yeah I could agree with the Zima and Rock Chalk Jayhawk.... took out 2 teams and one fanbase in one year. Hokie football fans and Tar Heel bball fans. 90% of the time they're one in the same simply because most Tech fans didn't know Tech existed until Maurice DeShazo came along. Or am I giving too much benefit of the doubt? [/ QUOTE ] LOL... The ol' "Rock Chalk Jayhawk" sure is a good one. Original. You must be bitter because the Hokies that took the Whooo's ACC title and ended Chris Long's final game in C'ville as a loss in football are indeed the same ones who brought the broom onto the basketball court. Penis Envy, I understand. This has nothing to do with the Harrisonburg football players. I'm done with this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lance 228 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 "where my money...." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoard 18 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 [ QUOTE ] LOL yeah I could agree with the Zima and Rock Chalk Jayhawk.... took out 2 teams and one fanbase in one year. Hokie football fans and Tar Heel bball fans. 90% of the time they're one in the same simply because most Tech fans didn't know Tech existed until Maurice DeShazo came along. Or am I giving too much benefit of the doubt? [/ QUOTE ] How many UVa fans knew they existed before Welsh resurrected them from doormat status? How much fan support did they have up until then? I guess the Cav fans are "bandwagoners" too. Even so, with Welsh they still only managed one SHARED ACC title. You know, the only conference football championship UVa has ever won in 50-plus years in the league--nearly 40 of which were before FSU joined. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan 3,569 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 http://www.dnronline.com/news_details.php?AID=16137&CHID=1 Drug Probe Targets HHS Athlete Affidavit: Football Coaches Apparently Failed To Tell Police Of Alleged Pain Pill Dealing By Pete DeLea and Mike Barber HARRISONBURG - A member of Harrisonburg High School's 2007 football team is under investigation in connection with selling prescription pain pills to teammates over the past two seasons, according to an affidavit for a warrant to search Harrisonburg High School. Police executed the warrant at the high school Wednesday morning, seizing a number of documents relating to possible drug use by students, according to the affidavit. The affidavit for the warrant alleged that the football player, senior Ronnell Brandon, 17, sold the drugs before games to "to take away the pain of hits." On March 28, police interviewed at least 10 student-athletes who said they observed the sale of or purchased prescription pain pills from Brandon. Police also interviewed several coaches, including head coach Tim Sarver. Authorities determined the coaches had knowledge of transactions, but failed to report them to police, according to the affidavit. "It is also apparent that this information and knowledge was known by not only the players themselves but also several coaches of the Harrisonburg High School football [team]," Harrisonburg Police Sgt. Chris Rush of the CHARGE Gang Task Force wrote in the affidavit. Brandon, a 5-foot-10, 200-pounder, was named the Massanutten District's Defensive Player of the Year for the 2007 season after registering more than 100 tackles. Police interviewed Brandon on March 12, according to court records. Police haven't filed charges against anyone involved in the case yet, said Lt. Kurt Boshart, who added that they are not limiting the investigation's focus to just football players. Although CHARGE started the investigation, Boshart said there are no "strong connections" to gang activity, but the investigation is still ongoing. The Shenandoah Valley Multi-Jurisdictional Grand Jury is currently hearing evidence, according to several sources involved with the case. Police say the investigation centers around the possible sale of a Schedule I or II drug. Under Virginia law, the distribution of a Schedule II drug - a Food and Drug Administration designation for a drug, including many potent painkillers, that has a high potential for abuse - is a felony and is punishable by five to 40 years in prison for each count. The distribution occurring in a school zone could carry an additional one-to five-year sentence per count. Police executed a search warrant for documents related to Brandon "that would show a documentation of suspected, and/or confirmed drug use or crimes of robbery." During a search, police seized a letter dated Nov. 14, 2003, showing a suspension from school for Brandon under investigation for possession of illegal substance or look-alike. Harrisonburg City Public Schools Superintendent Donald Ford declined to comment on the investigation. Robbery Claim Sparks Drug Probe The investigation began when Rush interviewed Alex Owah on Jan. 23 about his involvement in or knowledge of an armed robbery, which occurred in October on South Avenue in Harrisonburg, according to court documents. Owah, a 17-year-old junior and a running back on the football team, admitted to being a part of the robbery of a friend from Rockbridge High School, according to court documents. He also said two other HHS student-athletes were involved in the robbery. He claimed the incident was intended only to scare the person but it went "further than what he had planned on." Owah also said Brandon pulled a knife while another student grabbed a bag of clothing from the backseat of the victim's car. During an interview with police, Owah said he told Jay Hook, an HHS assistant football coach, some of what happened. Owah said Hook questioned him about the incident after hearing he was involved. Also during the interview with Rush, Owah said that Brandon was selling "pink and white" pills to other players and that some of the coaches knew what was going on. "Owah stated the pills were being sold too often and too frequently for it not to be noticed and he had also heard of a player approaching one of the coaches about it," Rush wrote in the affidavit. Owah orally committed to play for the University of Virginia in December. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound running back cannot officially sign with the Cavaliers until after his senior season. He was the Massanutten District Offensive Player of the Year last season, after rushing for 1,795 yards and 24 touchdowns. He helped HHS to the Region III semifinals. As a sophomore, Owah rushed for 1,869 yards and 28 scores, capturing U.Va.'s interest. Owah had scholarship offers from Virginia, Virginia Tech and Division I-AA James Madison. Students Point Fingers Following the interview with Owah, Harrisonburg police officers interviewed at least nine other football players who said they observed pill sales, purchased or were given pain pills, the affidavit states. One student told investigators he received pills from Brandon and heard Brandon was selling them for as much as $5 a pill, though others told investigators it was $2 a pill. "[The student] also confirmed that the pills were sold and given to other football players on a regular basis in the boy's locker room of Harrisonburg High School before home football games," Rush wrote in the affidavit. Another player said he received three or four pills from Brandon this past season. "He saw Brandon on one occasion in the boy's locker room of Harrisonburg High School with a plastic bag of about 20 pills inside the plastic bag," Rush wrote. "[He] estimated that approximately 40 percent of the football team was abusing the pills while about 75 percent of the team knew about the pills being sold." A third player said he eventually purchased large quantities of drugs from Brandon off-campus. "[He] stated he got as many as 60 pills at one time from Brandon," Rush wrote. Coaches Quizzed According to the affidavit, on March 28, police questioned Sarver about Brandon's dealing of prescription pain pills and of the robbery. "Sarver stated that he had heard of Ronnell selling drugs on one occasion and on another occasion received an anonymous note that his football players were dealing drugs," the affidavit states. According to the affidavit, Sarver approached Brandon about the allegations in spring 2007, but Brandon "denied any involvement or knowledge." Sarver did not report any of this to police, the affidavit says. Sarver became Harrisonburg's head coach in 1985. He is 247-123-4 and led the Blue Streaks to a state championship in 2001. Sarver declined to talk about the case Wednesday, but did say, "We hear rumors every year." Sarver said he and the coaches look into any allegations that appear to be credible. Police also questioned assistant coaches David Long and Hook, who is also Harrisonburg's baseball coach. Long told the investigator he approached Brandon on two separate occasions about the allegations after hearing talk about Brandon's "using and/or giving away pills while at school." Each time, Brandon "denied any knowledge." Principal Irene Reynolds said Wednesday that privacy laws prevent her from discussing the investigation. She would not say if Sarver or any of the other coaches reported the possible drug sales, but said, "any time something is reported to me, I investigate it 100 percent." Reynolds stood by the Blue Streaks' coaching staff. "They've always done the right thing in the past," said Reynolds. "I have complete faith in them." Athletic director Joe Carico, also the team's offensive coordinator, said Wednesday that he had heard "rumors" of the investigation, but had not been officially notified and was not subpoenaed to testify in front of the grand jury. Carico's name doesn't appear in the affidavit. Contact Pete DeLea at 574-6278 or pdelea@dnronline.com Contact Mike Barber at 574-6296 or mbarber@dnronline.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhs7695 185 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 Gman, does Tim Sarver has connections to Bluefield? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMan 3,569 Author Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 [ QUOTE ] Gman, does Tim Sarver has connections to Bluefield? [/ QUOTE ] Yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhs7695 185 Report Share Posted April 10, 2008 [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Gman, does Tim Sarver has connections to Bluefield? [/ QUOTE ] Yes [/ QUOTE ] Thought I recognized that name. Played at Concord too, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTSteve 10 Report Share Posted April 11, 2008 No, Tim played at Emory. His brother Mike played at Concord. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VHSLhelper 571 Report Share Posted April 11, 2008 seems like he was a '64 grad, meaning he woulda played for Gainer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
futbolking 766 Report Share Posted April 11, 2008 All the great coaches have ties to Bluefield....(WV or VA) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTSteve 10 Report Share Posted April 12, 2008 Both Mike and Tim played for Coach Gainer. Mike played on Coach Gainer's first two teams, and graduated in 1961. Both of these teams were undefeated- but won only one state championship since WV played only a championship game between #1-#2. The 1960 team ended the season ranked #3 My uncle also played on these teams, which is why I know some of the history. Coach Chmara's first team (1968) suffered the same fate, ending at 9-0 and #3, but not making the championship game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhs7695 185 Report Share Posted April 12, 2008 How many games did Bluefield High win in a row in the 60's?? I've heard it was in the 40's but they would get screwed out of the title game a lot because they would play so many teams from Virginia and wound up # 3 most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTSteve 10 Report Share Posted April 12, 2008 BHS won 32 straight games from 1966-1969, which included undefeated seasons in 1967 (State Championship) and 1968 (Coach Chmara's first team). The streak started after a loss to Big Creek (AAA at the time) in the 4th game of 1966. The 1966 team was 9-1, followed by seasons of 11-0, 9-0, and 8-2 in 1969. A 14-12 loss to Beckley broke the streak. I was very fortunate to be a part of the 1967-1969 teams; and my senior class did not lose a game in high school until the Beckley loss, the 7th game of our senior year. By the way, the 1965 team was also an undefeated state championship team, which provides another perspective of BHS' dominance in that era. In the four seasons from 1965-1968, BHS lost only one game. It was a great era in which to play football at BHS. Very fond memories for an old guy like me. Keep in mind that Coach Gainer's staff during this time included Coach Chmara and Coach Carlock. Having three Hall of Famers on a staff can produce excellent results. Also, Coach Chuck Lambert rounded out the staff; and while known as a basketball coach, Chuck was a great scout. He was usually on the road scouting future teams; and he didn't miss much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTSteve 10 Report Share Posted April 12, 2008 Sorry that I didn't respond to that part of your post mentioning playing Virginia teams. Playing Virginia teams did not adversely impact your rating; since like today, the SSAC simply applied the West Virginia classification guidelines to the Virginia teams based on enrollment. 1960 and 1968 were the years that BHS was undefeated, but did not get a chance to play in the two-team playoff format (a single championship game). In 1968, we had only nine games on the schedule because Logan had to cancel its entire season due to SSAC sanctions for playing ineligible players in 1967. If the SSAC had forced them to forfeit all scheduled games, we would have played Charleston in the championship game. However, since they just eliminated their season too late for teams to schedule other opponents, we payed the highest price for Logan's error. By 1975, West Virginia had gone to a four-team playoff system; which allowed the 4th ranked BHS team to beat #1 Buckhannon Upshur 42-0 in the semifinal game, followed by a 21-7 championship victory over South Charleston, ending the season at 11-1. You can only wonder how many more championships BHS would have won during the 1960s if there had been a four or eight team playoff; but 1960 (10-0), 1961 (9-1), 1966 (9-1) and 1968 (9-0) were very good teams that did not get a playoff opportunity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trublue 939 Report Share Posted April 13, 2008 Wow, that era of BHS, the Beavers, was what many ppl today would call a dynasty. What a storied history. Thank you for sharing it with us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bhs7695 185 Report Share Posted April 13, 2008 I wish I could have seen some of those teams from the 60's and to also see some of those historic Big Creek - Bluefield battles too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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