Six arrested after fights break out at O’Fallon football game. Here’s what happened

An 18-year-old from Cahokia Heights was charged with three felony counts and one misdemeanor stemming from an altercation at the end of the O’Fallon Township High School Blue/Gold football game Friday.

Five other juveniles were charged after the fight, said O’Fallon Police Chief Kirk Brueggeman.

The St. Clair County State’s Attorney’s Office issued the following charges against Antwan Douglas on Saturday: Aggravated battery to a police officer (Class 2 felony), aggravated battery to a school employee (Class 3 felony), and aggravated assault of a police officer (Class 4 felony), and resisting a police officer (Class A misdemeanor).

Brueggeman said Douglas was denied entry into the stadium by a school employee, and subsequently “pushed the employee about the neck.”

“While being taken into custody, he actively resisted arrest and punched an O’Fallon police officer in the head multiple times and attempted to strike another,” he said.

Police officer Casey Broadston was not seriously injured, said Brueggeman, who declined to identify the school employee.

For Douglas, St. Clair County Judge William G. Clay IV issued a warrant of arrest and set bail at $65,000. Douglas was taken into custody and is at the St. Clair County Jail.

Brueggeman said there were two other fights during the games – one involving two juvenile males and another involving three juvenile females. All were arrested.

“These cases will all be forwarded to the Juvenile Division of the State’s Attorney’s Office for review. I cannot comment further on those due to their age,” he said.

Four officers of the O’Fallon Police Department were working at the game, along with school administration and school security.

“In a high school setting, it is not uncommon for there to be fights,” he said. “Unfortunately, it is something that happens from time to time, but when it does we take the matter seriously as does the school district.”

Brueggeman said such incidents are not indicative of most students and residents in O’Fallon.

“We have a lot of quality kids here and it is unfortunate for the acts of a few to cast a shadow on the rest of them enjoying the start of the high school football season. We have a great relationship with OTHS, and we work together to ensure the safety of everyone that attends an OTHS sporting event,” he said.

Immediately after the game, social media posts on community pages indicated there were gunshots fired at the game. Both the O’Fallon Police Department and O’Fallon Township High School issued statements saying those reports were “entirely false.”

“These were obviously false so we felt the need to make an immediate statement on social media debunking those posts so there would not be panic among community members or parents of students attending the game,” he said.

“There was a large police presence at the end of the game as fans filtered out of the stadium,” he said. “We also had several officers working the game and will be working with OTHS to ensure the safety of our students and residents for future games.”

Darcy Benway, superintendent of O’Fallon Township High School District 203, posted a response after the game on Friday:

“We are all disheartened at the behaviors that occurred this evening,” she said. “We are grateful for the partnership that we have with local law enforcement and the dedication of the OTHS administration and in-house security personnel.

“Acts or threats of violence in our schools or at school activities will not be tolerated. Parents and guardians are asked to please speak to your students about appropriate behaviors and strategies to resolve conflicts.

“Our teachers and administrators work with students daily on conflict resolution, but we need the partnerships of others having influence over students. School leadership will take any act or threat of violence seriously and will address it swiftly. Consequences may be severe depending on the circumstances.”

The annual Blue-Gold Game is a tradition that kicks off the Panthers football teams and cheerleading squads’ seasons. The freshman, junior varsity and varsity football teams play in scrimmages, and there are performances by the Marching Panthers, Golden Girls dance team, OTown cheerleading team, and Kids Camp cheer squad.

The first home game is Friday, Aug. 25, and the O’Fallon Panthers will play the Granite City Warriors.