The newest development in the saga is the fact that backup defensive back Brian Young has also been suspended for "a violation of team rules," according to Chris Cameron, associate athletic director for media relations. Young had been injured and has not played in a game this season, and his suspension was not announced publicly like Ohliger's.
Conflicting reports give very different accounts of the events, which occurred just after 2 a.m. on Oct. 5 outside The Kells bar on Brighton Avenue in Allston.
Several eyewitnesses, who requested anonymity, said the trouble started inside the bar when Ohliger, who is 20, and Young approached a BC student and an argument ensued. Witnesses reported seeing the student on the ground seconds later, but could not confirm he had been hit by one of the players, or what was said between the parties.
These witnesses then said the incident moved outside the bar. Though reports differ, multiple witnesses reported seeing the student who had been engaged in the earlier argument with Ohliger and Young, hit Ohliger outside the bar. According to numerous eyewitnesses, another football player - who has not been suspended and is listed on the two-deep depth chart for tonight's game against Virginia Tech - then entered the fray and punched two other BC students in the face, sending both sprawling to the ground. Eyewitnesses say the fight then escalated, as the players and students scuffled with punches and kicks flying from all directions.
Several other football players and other BC students were in the area, but were either standing aside or attempting to break up the fight. Other than Ohliger, none of the students mentioned in eyewitness accounts as having been at the bar were underage.
Elaine Driscoll, Boston Police Department spokesman, said officers responded immediately to radio calls at 2:01 a.m. reporting that a fight was occurring outside the bar. The report states that upon arrival at 2:07 a.m., "officers did not observe any fighting or any problems" and that "all subjects had fled prior to police arrival."
Driscoll said that though the case occurred in Allston, because the incident had subsided and no charges had been filed as of Wednesday, the case was being handled internally by the Boston College Police Department (BCPD). The Kells was, however, served with a license violation by the Boston Police for the fight.
In an interview with the Boston Herald on Sunday, Ohliger gave a distinctly different account of the events. He said he was at the bar with approximately 10 teammates and that no contact occurred between the parties until they were outside the bar, when he says two young men threatened him.
After the fight broke out, Ohliger said a bouncer from The Kells then held him on the ground, but that the men "kept kicking and punching me and taking cheap shots when I had my hands behind my back." Ohliger told the Herald he was upset with how he had been portrayed in media reports.
"I told Coach [O'Brien] that I'm sorry I put myself in that position to be in a place like that; in a climate where a bunch of kids are drunk," Ohliger told the Herald. "But then again, I got attacked, and I think anyone with a conscience would fight back.
Ohliger also claimed he did not know the non-football players involved in the incident.
The students involved in the incident declined to comment because the investigation is ongoing. Ohliger and Young were not available for comment.
The three BC students, all seniors, went to St. Elizabeth's Hospital as a result of injuries suffered in the fight, but as of Wednesday no criminal charges had been filed at Brighton Municipal Court.
O'Brien and the football team have not stated specifically why Ohliger was suspended other than to comment he has been suspended indefinitely and that he exhibited "conduct unbecoming a Boston College football player."
Questions have thus arisen as to why exactly Ohliger has been suspended, and the lack of specificity on the part of the football team has led to widespread speculation. Young's suspension - since he is over 21 - seems to hint that the suspensions hinge more on the fight than Ohliger's presence in the bar underage.
The BC Office of Public Affairs declined to comment on the incident because it is still being investigated by BCPD.
This is not the first time BC athletes have been involved in an off-campus incident, though this one is unique in that thus far no criminal charges have been filed. In 2001, basketball players Kenny Harley and Andrew Bryant were charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon for a fight at Mary Ann's involving two non-BC students. The charges were later dropped and the case dismissed for a lack of evidence. Bryant was also charged with being underage at a bar, a punishable offense according to University policy.
Because the BCPD investigation is not complete and no full police report currently exists, the Office for the Dean of Student Development has not begun investigating Ohilger's presence at the bar, according to Dean Robert Sherwood.
"We're still waiting for official copies of Boston Police and Boston College Police reports, and we have yet to receive formal charges," said Sherwood.
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