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The University of Georgia football recruiting staffer who survived a car crash in January that claimed the lives of former football player Devin Willock and another recruiting staffer has been fired by the school.
Victoria Bowles sued the school and former Bulldogs star Jalen Carter last month over the car crash, which occurred Jan. 15 in Athens, Ga., shortly after a parade celebrating the Bulldogs’ national championship.
Another recruiting staff member, Chandler LeCroy, was reportedly racing a school-leased SUV against Carter prior to the crash.
Carter was selected ninth-overall in the 2023 NFL Draft by the Eagles.
Police said LeCroy, who died in the wreck, was driving more than 100 miles per hour and had a blood-alcohol concentration of .197 — more than twice the legal limit of .08.
Bowles’ lawyers said she is being retaliated against for her lawsuit.
The university said in a statement that Bowles was fired for not cooperating with its investigation.
Another Georgia player, Warren McClendon, sustained only minor injuries.
Bowles, who was sitting in the backseat next to Willock, sustained serious injuries including lumbar and rib fractures, a spinal cord injury and lacerations to the kidney and liver, her lawsuit stated.
She also sustained a closed-head injury with neurological damage and severe eye pain.
The lawsuit, which includes LeCroy’s estate as an additional defendant, requests at least $171,595 in general damages along with punitive damages.
The suit claims the Georgia athletic association entrusted a rented SUV to LeCroy and was aware that she had at least two “super speeder” violations among four speeding tickets prior to the crash.
The athletic association said staff members were authorized to use rental vehicles for recruiting purposes only.
“Under no circumstances were recruiting staff authorized to use rental cars to drive at excessive speeds while intoxicated,” the athletic association said in a statement.
Bowles was on paid medical leave for a couple of months following the crash, before the athletic association placed her on unpaid leave in March, according to records obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Rob Buck, an attorney representing Bowles in her lawsuit, said the university has engaged in a “campaign of intimidation” against his client, whose job paid less than $12,000 a year.
“Tory, like all other perceived liabilities to the football program, became expendable to UGA, and despite her loyalty and meager salary, has been steamrolled,” he said.
The athletic association said in a statement Monday that while it wished Bowles well in her recovery, it was forced to fire her for lack of cooperation.
“Applicable policies require university employees to cooperate with internal investigations,” the statement obtained by the Journal-Constitution said. “Over the course of several months, Ms. Bowles was asked — on numerous occasions — to speak with our investigators and provide information, and through her attorney, she repeatedly refused to cooperate.
“As a result, we were ultimately left with no choice but to terminate her employment.”
Carter received 12 months’ probation and a $1,000 fine in March after pleading no contest to misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and racing.
McClendon was a fifth-round pick by the Rams.
– With AP.
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