Two days following a reported in-flight altercation between two Auburn men’s basketball players, the Auburn Police Department released a statement titled, “Auburn Police respond to disorderly passengers on flight call.”
The statement read:
“On Nov. 8, 2024, at approximately 3:20 p.m., officers from the Auburn Police Department responded to the Auburn University Regional Airport in reference to a report of disorderly passengers on a flight. Members of the flight crew reported that two passengers were involved in a physical altercation. The altercation occurred in airspace not in the jurisdiction of the Auburn Police Department.
“The pilot returned the flight to the Auburn University Regional Airport where the involved passengers were removed from the aircraft. The appropriate investigative federal agencies were notified by the Auburn Police Department.”
While the statement doesn‘t name the two passengers, Jahki Howard and Ja’Heim Hudson did not travel with the team when it re-departed for Houston Friday night.
Head coach Bruce Pearl was asked about the incident on Auburn‘s pregame radio show prior to the game against Houston, but didn’t comment on the situation in much detail.
“It‘s an unfortunate situation. We‘re dealing with it head on, but I’m not going to comment on it any further tonight,” Pearl said.
Auburn beat Houston 74-69 Saturday night, improving to 2-0 on the season.
Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at prauterkus@al.com
