It was a big night for the football team at Union High School on the northwest edge of Virginia: They were set to play a pivotal game after going undefeated all season.
The Union High School Bears cruised to another win, their 12th since the season began in August, as they advanced to the regional finals, two games away from a potential state championship.
But the coach who led them during the season was not there to cheer them on. He had disappeared earlier that week – and is now the subject of a missing persons investigation.
Travis Turner, listed as a physical education teacher and head football coach at Union High School, has been missing since Thursday, according to Virginia State Police. They say the 46-year-old man was last seen wearing a gray sweatshirt, sweatpants and glasses.
Authorities have not shared when or where Turner was last seen. But the mystery begins before his disappearance: special agents of the Virginia State Police were sent to his home in Appalachia, a town of less than 2,000 people, on Thursday evening, officials told CNN.
The police said that the agents were sent as part of the “early stages of the investigation,” but that they did not go to arrest the football coach. It is not clear what the investigation is.
“While in transit, agents were informed that Turner was no longer at the location,” the agency said.
An official search for Turner continued through the weekend, with search and rescue teams, drones and K-9 units dispatched as part of the effort. The investigation is ongoing and Turner has not yet been located, Virginia State Police told CNN in a statement Monday evening.
Wise County Public Schools, which includes Union, responded to CNN’s questions about Turner with a statement saying, “A staff member has been placed on paid administrative leave while an outside agency reviews an allegation that was reported to the division. This is standard procedure and is not a determination of wrongdoing. This situation also involves an active law enforcement matter, and the division cannot comment further.”
Before Saturday’s game, a pastor led a community prayer. Pastor Bryan Gunter said, “We can count on our community to be bigger than the situation we’re facing,” in an interview with WCYB.
One student athlete said he had encouraged his friends to persevere after the week’s challenges.
“We talked in the huddle and said, listen boys, we’re going to have to handle adversity here,” senior running back Keith Chandler said after the game, according to WCYB. “We stick together as brothers here and we should come out victorious.”
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