Two Indiana University basketball players are in trouble after investigators say they tried to hide vodka from police.
Indiana State Excise Police cited sophomore Emmitt Holt and freshman Thomas Bryant for illegal possession of alcohol in Bloomington, where off-court issues continue to plague the team.
Even to the new kids on campus, the first reaction was: not again.
"Yep, got the notification. Pretty shocked," said freshman TJ Hindman.
They learned Monday afternoon about another incident involving IU basketball players accused of breaking the law with alcohol or drug violations.
"It's college. It's bound to happen, it's just crazy that it's happened so much here," Hindman said.
The latest incident happened just before 1:00 am Saturday, just down the road from Assembly Hall.
Two players were allegedly caught with vodka in a parked car outside the Convenient Food Mart on North Dunn. Investigators say five people were in the car, including IU sophomore player Emmitt Holt and IU freshman player Thomas Bryant.
Excise Police say as an officer walked by, Holt in the backseat, shouted to Bryant in the front seat to hide the vodka. Police say they each tried to hide a bottle. They were both cited for illegal possession.
The other three people in the car were not cited for any violations.
Hoosier Nation reacted swiftly, especially about Holt, who's been in trouble before.
Mike Pegram is publisher of Peegs.com. He saw his message boards blow up as soon as WTHR first reported the news.
"Emmitt was with a freshman who just got on campus that does show irresponsibility, a lack of leadership," Pegram said. "It's a lack of leadership and lack of maturity, especially after what happened last fall."
Last Halloween weekend, Holt was the driver of a car that ran over and seriously injured teammate Devin Davis. Police say Holt had been drinking.
The incident last Friday marks the seventh Hoosier player to have an off-court problem in a little more than a year. Fans say that pattern is what has them so concerned.
But they're divided on who to blame.
"It kind of makes me wonder like what's going on with the coaching staff, honestly, because they bring in these top recruits like Bryant, four-star recruit, they bring him in. You think their main priority would be to keep these guys out of trouble," said IU Freshman Keaton Lents.
"Well, you know, you can only do so much. You can't watch them 24/7," Hindman said. "So, it's kind of on the players to make sure they're staying out of trouble."
For now, both players are still on the team. IU has not doled out any discipline.
IU Athletics released a statement Monday that read:
"We are aware that men’s basketball players Emmitt Holt and Thomas Bryant were each cited Friday for underage possession of alcohol. We take this matter very seriously and are continuing to gather information."
