Suspended Baylor defender arrested on assault charge

Senior Blanchard is facing domestic violence allegations.

— Baylor defensive back Travon Blanchard was free on bond Wednesday after his arrest on a misdemeanor assault charge stemming from domestic violence allegations that led to his suspension from the team five months ago.

Blanchard was arrested Tuesday by Baylor police on a warrant from Fort Bend County.

He was booked into the McLe n nan County jail, where records show he was released on $6,000 bond Tuesday night.

A statement from the Baylor athletic department said Blanchard’s status with the team was unchanged. The senior has been suspended from all team activities since February, when a former girlfriend’s allega- tions of violence and threats led to a court granting her request for a protective order against him.

According to online court records, the woman told police that she and Blanchard got into an argument while having dinner at a restaurant in Stafford, Texas, on Feb. 4, and that her pinkie finger was cut in a tussle over her car keys.

When the officer asked the woman if there was a history of violence between the two, she said there was, in Waco, where they both lived and attended school at Baylor.

Baylor was notified about the allegations on Feb. 7, and initiated a campus student-conduct process against Blanchard, who as a starter last season for the Bears was fourth on the team with 73 tackles.

Several federal Title IX discrimination lawsuits are still pending against Baylor from more than a dozen women who claim the school and football program ignored, mishandled or tried to cover up reports of sexual or physical abuse for years. Another suit was settled out of court last week.

A sexual assault scandal last year led to the firing of former football coach Art Briles and the departures of the school’s former athletic director and president. on campus last August for the start of fall camp and spent about “70 percent” of the time during the season working with the second-team defense behind Carl Lawson and Jeff Holland at Buck (hybrid lineman/linebacker).

The other 30 percent of the time, Coe worked with the scout team during the week, but he never saw the field in 2016.

That will change this fall, when Coe is a lock to factor into Garner’s rotation along the defensive line. After opening the spring repping some at Buck, Coe spent much of spring practices working as the backup to sophomore Marlon Davidson at defensive end.

Coe, who received praise from teammates during Auburn’s preparation for the Sugar Bowl back in December, continued to impress during the spring despite being ham- pered early on by an undisclosed hamstring injury. He finished A-Day with four total tackles, including one for a loss of yardage.

Garner believes part of the issue with Coe’s hamstring stems from the weight the defensive end has put on since arriving on campus and his body adjusting to the addi- tional weight while running. When Coe — a three-time national champion wrestler in high school in the 285-pound division — enrolled, he was at 242 pounds but has since made it to 280 pounds this off- season, according to Garner.

“I mean, he looks great,” Garner said. “He looks like a Greek god, but when you come in 240 to 280, you’re talking about in the course of eight months? That’s a lot. I’m sure that probably affected him with soft tissue-type injuries.”

Auburn’s roster has Coe listed at 270 pounds, which is what Garner described as the ideal playing weight for the redshirt freshman.

“We could probably trim him down a little bit … but he can still run like a deer, and he’s so athletic, so long, so powerful,” Garner said.

While Coe has cemented himself as the No. 2 defensive end in the rotation behind Davidson, Auburn’s coaches aren’t painting him into a corner with his role. Garner believes Coe could play a variety of positions on Auburn’s defensive line, depending on which package the team is fielding at a given time.

“He can play end, he can play Buck, he can also he could be like Marlon on the rabbits (and play tackle),” Garner said. “But he also can do it out there (and play in space), so it definitely gives you a lot of options.”