Was The Montee Ball Attack Not So Random?

Was the Montee Ball beating random? Related to an earlier fight?

It’s starting to look like Wisconsin running back Montee Ball may not have been just some random target while he walked down the street at 2:15 the other morning.

From the State Journal:

Madison police said they believe a “precipitating event” led to the attack early Wednesday on University of Wisconsin senior running back Montee Ball, who will miss next week’s start of the preseason football camp after suffering a concussion.

Central District Capt. Carl Gloede said Thursday police were still trying to find out what that incident was, when and where it happened, what Ball’s involvement might have been, and whether other football players were involved.

A witness to the attack on Ball by five men at about 2:15 a.m. in the 500 block of University Avenue said one of the assailants said something like, “One down, nine to go,” Gloede said, suggesting others might have been targeted.

Interesting. I hope I’m not one of the other nine.

There’s more:

Ball is cooperating with police and said he does not believe anyone would have reason to retaliate against him, Gloede said.

In a posting to his Twitter account Thursday, Ball denied an unattributed report on the celebrity news website tmz.com that he and other teammates beat a non-player at the home of another football player about a week before the attack.

“The report that I was involved in a fight is totally false,” he wrote.

Gloede said Thursday he had no information related to the tmz.com report. “What they’re describing is not what we’re looking at,” he said. University police have received no report of a disturbance involving football players occurring on campus, said Sgt. Aaron Chapin.

Well, if nobody reported anything, it must not have happened. Snitches, stitches and all that.

Update: Police say Ball was present at a fight the night before.

Related articles

• Montee Ball — Cops Investigating Possible Fight BEFORE Campus Attack (tmz.com)
• Cops: Montee Ball Assaulted In Madison (dailybigten.com)