Six Notre Dame players were arrested in two separate incidents Friday and Saturday.
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On Sunday, Irish football coach Brian Kelly announced that Redfield, a starting senior safety, had been dismissed from the team while White, Coney, Williams (sophomores) and Stepherson (freshman) will face internal discipline from the team.
Kelly said he made the decisions after meeting with all six players and talking with team leaders. “Their conduct fell far short of what we expect from those who represent our football team and this great university”.
Butler was arrested in a separate incident, and booked on a preliminary charge of battery to a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest in South Bend.
“The expectations we set for the members of our team are high, but they are especially so for the upperclassmen who are expected to provide leadership and a positive example to the other members of the team”, said Kelly.
All five were released thd same afternoon from the Fulton County Jail in Rochester, Indiana, where they had been held on misdemeanor possession charges of marijuana and an unlicensed handgun.
For Redfield, it marks the end of a disappointing tenure at Notre Dame.
The arrests came just a few hours before senior cornerback Devin Butler was arrested in South Bend in an unrelated incident. Butler was arrested following allegations that he pushed a woman and punched a police officer. During a subsequent search of the vehicle, officers allegedly found marijuana and a loaded handgun. The 6-foot-1, 198-pounder was suspended for a violation of team rules prior to Notre Dame’s Fiesta Bowl showdown with Ohio State this past winter.
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University vice president for public affairs and communications Paul Browne said in a statement Notre Dame was aware of the situation. Redfield and fellow Irish players K.J. Stepherson and Dexter Williams also face charges of possession of a handgun without a license. Prosecutor Kenneth Cotter said Saturday he was seeking court approval for additional time to investigate the case so his office could “determine whether formal charges are appropriate”. He also recorded one interception and three pass break ups in his second season as a starter. He was projected as a starter going into 2016 after totaling 64 tackles, fourth-most on the team, in 2015, but the year ended on a sour note as Redfield was suspended from the January 1 Fiesta Bowl for disciplinary reasons. He was expected to start again in 2016.
