Former Raiders No. 1 Pick Fired as Assistant High School Coach, Accused of Taking Donation

Former Oakland Raiders quarterback and No. 1 pick JaMarcus Russell has been fired by his alma mater, Williamson High School after being accused of taking a donation.

Dec 27, 2009; Cleveland, OH, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell (2) prior to the game against the Cleveland Browns at Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports / Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Former Oakland Raiders draft bust JaMarcus Russell is back in a negative spotlight after being fired as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Williamson High School in Mobile Alabama, last fall.

According to WKRG Sports, Russell had taken a $74,000 check written by local business owner Chris Knowles. The check was meant to go to the school as a donation.

WKRG Sports cited court documents that revealed Russell had deposited the check at Navigator Credit Union in July 2022.

Russell now faces a lawsuit.

According to WKRG Sports, "Knowles, a lifelong LSU fan, says Russell approached him in the summer of 2022 about making a donation to help Williamson football purchase weight-room equipment. After writing the $74,000 check out to Russell, Knowles said he later stopped payment on the check when Russell wouldn’t provide a receipt of the donation and quit returning his phone calls."

The case is scheduled for a trial in October.

Russell, a standout quarterback at LSU, was drafted by the Raiders with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft. He is considered the biggest draft bust of this century, having only lasted three seasons in the league. Russell was part of a legendary draft class that included Hall of Famers like Calvin Johnson, Joe Thomas, Patrick Willis and Darrelle Revis.

Russell threw for just 4,083 yards and 18 touchdowns in that time. He finished his brief career with the Silver and Black with a quarterback record of 7-18-0.

The former Raider was the club's only No. 1 pick in franchise history.

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