Former first-overall NFL Draft selection JaMarcus Russell is facing a lawsuit over a check written to him in the summer of 2022, and allegations that the former NFL quarterback misappropriated donation funds for weight-room equipment at the school where Russell was a football coach for his benefit.
As first reported by WKRG it is alleged that Russell approached Chris Knowles seeking a donation for the football program at his alma mater, Williamson High School, where the former LSU passer was a volunteer coach. According to court documents obtained by WKRG and reviewed by SB Nation Knowles wrote a check to the retired quarterback, which he deposited at Navigator Credit Union (NCU) in July of 2022.
According to Simone Eli of WKRG, Knowles stopped payment on the $74,000 check when “ … Russell wouldn’t provide a receipt of the donation and quit returning his phone calls.” NCU then filed a Complaint against Russell in the Circuit Court for Mobile County in March of 2023, alleging that Russell breached the terms and conditions of his demand deposit account. Specifically, NCU alleges that Russell “ … breached the agreement by failing or refusing to comply with its payment terms and conditions and by specifically drawing a check on his account with [NCU] for which payment was stopped.”
The lawsuit filed by NCU against Russell — Case No. CV-2023-900559.00 — is seeking $56,826.08 in specific damages, plus “attorney fees, punitive damages, and costs.”
Russell, in his Answer to the Complaint which was obtained by WKRG and reviewed by SB Nation, generally denied the allegations set forth by NCU in the lawsuit. While admitting that he deposited the check, Russell, through counsel, asserted that he did not stop payment on the check. Russell has also demanded “strict proof” of the allegations set forth by NCU in their Complaint.
Furthermore, Russell has since filed a Third-Party Complaint against Knowles and Selwonk Enterprises, asserting that Knowles “ … stopped payment on the check causing substantial losses” to the retired QB.
The matter is set for a trial in October of this year.
According to WKRG Russell lost his volunteer position with Williamson High School last fall. “JaMarcus Russell was relieved of his volunteer coaching duties at Williamson High School during the fall of last year,” Mobile County Public School officials confirmed to WKRG.
WKRG also reports that Williamson High School “never saw any of the money.”