UT athlete kicked off team after drug arrest

1/15/2005

A University of Toledo football player was kicked off the team after he was arrested for allegedly selling the painkiller OxyContin.

Rodney J. Gamby, 20, of 2845 Greenbriar Rd., was charged with aggravated trafficking in drugs. He was arraigned yesterday in Toledo Municipal Court on the charge and an unrelated minor misdemeanor traffic warrant. He was released on his own recognizance.

Mr. Gamby was arrested without incident about 6 p.m. Thursday at Westwood and Nebraska avenues after he was caught selling the prescription drug, police said.

They seized a pill bottle containing seven 80 milligram OxyContin pills.

Police began investigating Mr. Gamby a day or two before his arrest after they received information through another case that he was selling OxyContin.

Vice Lt. Dan Schultz said no other athletes are being investigated in connection with Mr. Gamby's arrest.

He did not know how long Mr. Gamby allegedly had been selling the drug.

"Rodney Gamby has been removed from our football team. My heart goes out to his family, and my thoughts and prayers are with Rodney. I will continue to support Rodney as a person, but he will no longer be a member of our football program," UT football Coach Tom Amstutz said.

Mr. Gamby, who played the whip linebacker position, was a third-year sophomore this past season.

The St. Francis de Sales High School graduate was The Blade's Player of the Year for the 2001 season, when he helped the Knights win a state Division II championship.

Primarily a running back in high school, he ran for 2,409 yards and 31 touchdowns in 2001.

He entered UT in the fall of 2002 but was hurt in the first game in which he played. He sat out the remainder of that season, and has played the last two years.

Gamby said he was not using OxyContin. A court document indicates his mother believes he has a drug problem and lists OxyContin. The document indicates Mr. Gamby lost a parent and is in counseling.

Mr. Gamby said he was doing someone a favor, wasn't trying to make money, and didn't make any money. He said he was "just caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time."

He declined further comment about the case. "I want to apologize to the people who support me and who I associate with - my family, teammates, and the young kids who look up to me," Mr. Gamby said. He said he hopes to return to the team.

A recent Blade special report showed authorities are seeing an increase in the illegal use of OxyContin, which can be crushed, snorted, melted, or "mainlined" via a needle into a vein.