Attorney: Coach had no knowledge of ‘brooming’

A high school football coach suspended after four players allegedly assaulted another player with a broom handle had no prior knowledge of a tradition known as “brooming,” his attorney said Thursday.

Corey Russell was placed on paid administrative leave after the assault occurred Sept. 28 inside the football locker room at Putnam City West High School.

“We haven’t done anything wrong,” Russell’s attorney, Joe White, told

The Oklahoman. “We will fight like heck for our good name.”

The players, who range in age from 15 to 18, confessed to participating in the assault, telling police it was a tradition that had been passed down from “class to class,” according to a Putnam City Schools police report.

Russell, who took over the football program in the spring, was not in the locker room when the assault occurred, White said.

“He had no knowledge of any kind of brooming, any kind of hazing,” White said. “None of this has ever been shared with the coach. He knew nothing about it.

“Coach would never tolerate this. Ever. Any form of hazing is wrong.”

White said he expects Putnam City Schools to recommend termination for Russell, who is still employed by the district.

“It looks like we’re going to have a hearing in front of the school board,” he said. “People infer guilt if you resign. We’ll have an opportunity to protect his good name.”

Laura Holmes, the attorney representing Putnam City Schools, said Russell remained on paid administrative leave Thursday. Holmes wouldn’t say whether the district is considering firing Russell.

“Nothing has been scheduled for a termination hearing at this time,” she said. “No recommendation has been made at this time.”

According to the police report, one of the suspects told an investigator he went to the freshman locker room to “mess with all of the freshmen and that he started messing with the victim.”

The suspect and a second student carried the boy to the varsity locker room where the assault took place, the report states.

A third suspect told police that he and the others were “messing around with the (victim) and then picked him up and held him still and then (a fourth suspect) shoved the broomstick up his rear end and then we put him down,” the report states.

The 14-year-old victim was clothed during the assault, according to the police report.