JaMarcus Russell removed as high school coach, allegedly stole $74K school donation

Ex-Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell was removed from the football coaching staff at his former high school in Mobile, Ala. after a lawsuit accused him of allegedly taking money for himself that was meant as a donation to the school, according to WKRG Sports

“JaMarcus Russell was relieved of his volunteer coaching duties at Williamson High School during the fall of last year,” Mobile County Public School officials told WKRG.

Russell, 38, allegedly took a $74,000 check from local business owner Chris Knowles, who was approached by Russell about donating to Williamson High School’s football team to work toward buying the team weight room equipment, according to court documents.

The school allegedly never saw any of the money from Knowles, as Russell allegedly deposited the check at a credit union and withdrew $55,000 of the allotted amount.

Knowles told WKRG that he stopped payment on the $74,000 check when Russell refused to provide a donation receipt and stopped returning calls.

The credit union gave Russell the money as a loan at his behest.

The high school has since banned Russell from its campus and conversing with its football team, of which he was once a star player before heading to LSU for college.

The school could not confirm to WKRG that the lawsuit was a factor in Russell’s dismissal.

However, he reportedly attended an event for the football team this week but was immediately told he was not welcome.

“Earlier this week, it was reiterated to Mr. Russell that he is not permitted to be around the football program or on school campus,” the school district told WKRG.

Russell is known as one of the biggest NFL busts in history after he was selected as the No. 1 overall pick to the Raiders in the 2007 NFL Draft.

After only three seasons — all with a losing record under Tom Cable — no other team wanted to sign him, and it was sudden fallout for Russell.

He ended his career, going 7-18 in his 25 starts, with a 52.1 percent completion rate for 18 touchdowns and 23 interceptions across 31 games.