Two coaches on an Alabama high school football team have resigned after videos began circulating online showing team staff behaving inappropriately toward players.
Hoover High School’s head coach and defensive coordinator resigned this week, the school district announced. Announced This was made during a board meeting on Thursday, according to WBRC.
Coaches Drew Gilmer and Adam Helms were initially placed on administrative leave after shocking footage from a practice was released on social media on Tuesday that showed a coach ripping off a player’s helmet and then another coach thrusting his hip into a player’s face.
A second shocking video shows the coach lunging at a player, ripping off the helmet of another high school student and throwing it, knocking the player to the ground.
Not a good look for Hoover High School football… @Buccaneers #Hoover #Gilmer #garbage pic.twitter.com/YQ0QTsNPn0
— Chris Couch (@chriscouchgolf) August 7, 2024
The Hoover City School Board has not publicly confirmed the identity of the coach seen in the video, but the superintendent acknowledged the incident in a statement to the media.“The last few days have been extremely worrying for our varsity football players, coaches and the entire Hoover community. The safety and health of our students and staff remains our top priority.”
We have high expectations for our employees and students and currently our focus is on supporting our football players and coaching staff.
Alabama Rep. Juandalyn Givhan (D), an attorney representing the families of the students seen in the video, identified Gilmer as one of the coaches who behaved inappropriately.
“We’re here as legal counsel to the family of a 17-year-old child who was put through an experience that no child should ever have to go through, even on a playing field,” Givhan told reporters. Press Conference this week.
The senator continued.
As you may know, a video has gone viral depicting the actions of Hoover High School head football coach Drew Gilmer. Mr. Gilmer’s actions are pervasive, perverse, abusive, extreme and outrageous conduct that goes beyond the bounds of any human decency that should be expected from someone considered or defined as an educator in the Alabama public school system.
She added that the boy’s family was prepared to “pursue all legal options” and that “this is [Gilmer] Being a good coach.”
Instead, “it had everything to do with what was on video, which in an instant left questions and concerns not just in the state of Alabama but throughout the sports industry,” Givhan told reporters.
“I’ve seen and I know the level of contact a coach can make, but when a coach grabs a player, a child, by the head and pulls them towards his private area, something’s wrong,” she added. “This goes beyond the normal level of contact.”
The Hoover Police Department said its Special Victims Unit has begun investigating the case.
Givan also said the student he represented was only 16 years old at the time the video was recorded.
“He’s a fine young man. He’s clear about what he wants his future to be. He is dealing with an emotionally distraught situation,” another lawyer, Reginald McDaniel, said at a news conference. “As you can imagine, the attention this case has received has had a major impact on him emotionally and mentally. He has become withdrawn at this time. He feels humiliated.”
“Imagine a 16-year-old child being humiliated like that by a grown man who is supposed to be in a position of trust. His mental health is not good right now and he will likely need counseling,” McDaniel continued. “He is looking into that. We ask the public to understand what this child is going through and pray for him to get through this. He should not have had to go through this.”
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