Bell High player who struck Fernandina Beach player in head with helmet bonds out on battery charge, records show

FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. – An 18-year-old Bell High School football player who was captured on video pulling off a Fernandina Beach player’s helmet and then hitting him in the face with it during a playoff game has bonded out of jail after his arrest, records show.

The player, who is facing a battery charge, was arrested Tuesday in Gilchrist County, where he lives. His bond was set at $1,502.

He will now be given court dates to appear in Nassau County on the charge, which stems from a violent incident after the whistle on Friday that left a Pirates player bleeding from his face.

The offensive lineman from Bell was captured on video at the end of a play, grabbing a 15-year-old Fernandina Beach player by the facemask and then scuffling with him briefly.

In the video, the Pirates player can be seen pulling away, but the Bell player pulls off the Fernandina player’s helmet with his left hand, then swings it, striking him in the face with it.

“I did see a cut and bleeding from the side of his face,” said Reather Bennett, a Fernandina Beach team mom who has known the injured player since he was 5 years old.

It was an incident reminiscent of Cleveland’s Myles Garrett tearing the helmet off Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph and using it to hit him during a 2019 game.

The impact knocks the Pirates player to the ground as his teammates race out to help. The Bell player then tosses away the Fernandina player’s helmet and walks away from an official who was standing right behind him.

Police said referees and coaching staff intervened quickly, but multiple scuffles erupted both on and off the field.

Two Fernandina Beach officers, who were working the game, were able to gain control of the situation and separate those involved, and then the Bell High School bus and players were escorted off Amelia Island by the Fernandina Beach Police Department.

“I was shocked. I was angry. I was concerned,” Bennett said. “I didn’t find out about the actual hit until pick up when I went around the field to pick up the kids, when they explained to me that one of our players was attacked by another player.”

Bennett said as soon as she was told she went to find the injured player.

“He was bleeding from the side of his face, and he was very quiet,” she said. “He wasn’t angry. I think he was just still like his adrenaline and still in shock.”

Bennett’s son has played with the injured player since kindergarten — and says what happened Friday night left her son traumatized.

“He was shocked. He literally kept saying... ‘He didn’t do anything to deserve that.’ And he hurt for his friend,” Bennett said.

Fernandina Beach won the game 48-21 in the opening round of the Sunshine State Athletic Association state playoffs.

The Nassau County School District issued a statement Monday, commending players for their response after the turbulent incident.

“The incident at the conclusion of last Friday night’s football game between Fernandina Beach High School and Bell Middle/Senior High School, involving a Bell player pulling a FBHS player’s helmet off and striking him in the head with the helmet, has been reported to the Sunshine State Athletic Conference for investigation,“ the statement said.

“Bell Middle/Senior High School administration is aware of the incident and appropriate disciplinary consequences will be administered. The safety of our student athletes and proper sportsmanship are top priorities for all athletic programs at Fernandina Beach High School. We are proud of how our players, coaches, staff members, parents and fans represent the Pirate community. They are all to be commended for their response to what could have escalated into something much worse.”

Bell High is located in Gilchrist County, and the Gilchrist County School District also sent a statement to News4JAX, saying in part:

“We want to be clear that the Gilchrist County School District does not condone any form of aggressive or unsportsmanlike behavior. This incident does not reflect the values or expectations we hold for our students, athletes, or community.”