Players Claim They Need Guns

Increasing numbers of Washington football players reportedly have been carrying guns in recent years, some saying they need them for protection.

“A lot of people on the team have guns. They just don’t have them on campus,” said Tommie Smith, a strong safety from Antelope Valley High of Lancaster, Calif. “They let their (off-campus) friends keep them when they don’t need them.”

Smith, whose roommate, Danianke Smith (no relation), was arrested Monday night in a drug sting, said the available figures on gun ownership by team members are misleading.

State Department of Licensing records show one player this year and two last year bought at least eight handguns in the last 18 months.

University police said they knew of at least two Huskies with concealed-weapons permits, and Coach Don James said he confronted the issue after a handgun was found in the locker room last spring.

Danianke Smith pleaded guilty to firing a gun in Ravenna Park in 1990. Charges filed Tuesday allege that he had been involved in attempting to obtain and sell assault rifles and machine guns such as AK-47s and Uzis, King County prosecutor Norm Maleng said.

Tommie Smith, who declined to identify other gun owners on the team, said many are concerned about defending themselves from those who envy their athletic success, especially when they are in downtown nightclubs.

Danianke Smith got a gun for protection after his Chevrolet Blazer was stolen and stripped last summer, Tommie Smith said.

Quarterback Billy Joe Hobert, recently declared ineligible for accepting $50,000 in improper loans, said he bought a semiautomatic pistol in April to keep in his car when he went to bars frequented by potentially rough crowds.