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A sense of unease has gripped a small Virginia town following the unexplained disappearance of a high school football coach amid an unbeaten season.
State police in Virginia announced on Saturday they are actively collaborating with several state agencies to find 46-year-old Travis L Turner from Appalachia, who is the head coach at Union High School.
Officers were heading to Turner’s residence on Thursday as a part of an investigation when they discovered he was missing, raising alarms about his condition just as his team was gearing up for a playoff match.
Authorities clarified that their visit to Turner’s home was not intended for arrest but rather to speak with him regarding their ongoing inquiry, as reported by Football Scoop.
Early investigative efforts by agents from the Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Wytheville field office are focusing on a man from Wise County, according to WJHL.
Turner was last seen entering the woods near his home, prompting officers to focus on the area surrounding his home. He was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt, gray sweatpants and glasses.
‘We have had the drones up in the air looking, searching,’ Officer Jason Day of the Virginia State Police told WJHL, adding that have also deployed K-9s and tried to deploy helicopters, which were unable to fly on Saturday due to the weather.
Meanwhile, Wise County school officials announced on Friday that an unidentified employee has been placed on administrative leave as part of an external investigation.
A massive search effort is underway to locate Travis L. Turner, who serves as the head coach of the football team at Union High School in Virginia
Turner’s sudden disappearance came after he led Union to an undefeated season and the team ranked among the top in the state within their division
Turner has officially been declared a missing person
Turner was a high school football star himself, quarterbacking three state championship teams from 1994-97.
He has served as the head coach at Union since 2011 and was honored twice as the Southwest Virginia Coach of the Year.
Turner’s sudden disappearance came after he led Union to an undefeated season and the team ranked among the top in the state within their division.
Many on Facebook prayed for his safe return, as his wife Leslie Caudill Turner announced Friday night that he ‘is missing and that’s all we know.’
‘We love him and need him here with us,’ she said, thanking those who have ‘reached out with love and support.
‘Just keep praying that he comes home.’
A friend also posted online that both Leslie and Travis ‘have always been good people.
‘Everybody needs to be looking out for Leslie Caudill Turner and her family, and focus on finding her husband, not put stress [on] her and her kids,’ she wrote.
Writing directly to Leslie, the friend said she is ‘praying for you and your family and that they find Travis.’
Turner has served as the head coach at Union since 2011 and was honored twice as the Southwest Virginia Coach of the Year
Wise County school officials announced on Friday that an unidentified employee has been placed on administrative leave as part of an external investigation
In the meantime, Assistant Coach Jay Edwards has taken over the coaching duties as the season comes to an end.
Despite Turner’s mysterious disappearance, the Union football team was able to pull together to win Saturday’s game against Graham High School 12 – 0.
The victory pushed their record to 11 – 0 for the season.
‘I think w were going to play no matter what,’ senior defensive leader Carlos Anderson told the Bristol Herald-Courier following the game.
‘We were ready for this game. We’ve been ready since summer and we just had to go out and execute.’
Keith Chandler also noted that ‘it was a very emotional day today, but we knew coming into this game that we had to be physical and I figured that we were probably the most physical team on the field today.
‘We knew we were going to have to handle more adversity coming into today,’ he continued. ‘We got together and we talked. We knew we had to lock in.’