Robbie Rhodes Dismissed from Baylor Football Team for 'Undisclosed Reason' Nearly 2 Months After Drug Arrest
ByArt Briles and the Baylor Bears will be without one of their best up-and-coming wide receivers this season, as Robbie Rhodes has been dismissed from the team.
Accoridng to the Waco Tribune, Briles, head football coach at Baylor University, said the team and Rhodes "parted ways for undisclosed reasons." The sophomore was expected to take a much larger role in what was the highest scoring offense last season.
In early May, the Tribune reported Rhodes was stopped for not signaling during a lane change. When Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton approached the vehicle, he said he could smell marijuana and arrested Rhodes upon finding a baggie containing 5.8 grams in the car.
Rhodes was charged with possession and tampering because Swanton said the young football player tried to hide the bag of marijuana after the search began. Rhodes had no prior arrests, but had only been cited once for possession of drug paraphernalia.
A month later, the newspaper learned the McLennan County District Attorney's Office was not going to pursue criminal charges against Rhodes for the incident. Jonathon Sibley, an attorney in Waco, said at the time Baylor was administering drug tests to Rhodes for seven months and the wideout had not failed a single one.
One of Rhodes' negative tests was administered two days before the traffic stop in May, helping Sibley convince the DA of his client's innocence.
But Reggie Rhodes, a former NFL defensive lineman and Robbie's father, told ESPN his son's dismissal came after the young receiver violated a disciplinary agreement he had with the school.
"He was in agreement on sanctions that they made with him, and he broke the agreement," Reggie Rhodes said.
Robbie did not comment publicly and his father would not say specifically what led to the dismissal. Reggie said his son will now try to transfer to another school and pick between playing immediately at an FCS school or sitting during his sophomore season at an FBS school.
Robbie Rhodes caught ten passes as a freshman for 157 yards and no touchdowns, though he was a third-overall receiver in the 2013 recruit class, according to ESPN's rankings.