Interim Coach Addresses Missing Coach Travis Turner’s Disappearance

Jay Edwards, the interim Union High School football coach who took over for missing coach Travis Turner, applauded his team’s resilience in the face of national scrutiny.

WJHL reporter Belle Johnson revealed she spoke to Edwards after Union defeated rival Ridgeview High School, 21-14, in the Virginia High School League Class 2 regional finals on Saturday, November 29. 

“He said they’ve had student leaders step up to just kind of guide the younger ones along,” Johnson reported on Thursday, December 4. 

She added, “They’ve been telling him, ‘Don’t listen to the outside influence right now.’”

Edwards also spoke to a group of local reporters after the win on November 29, saying, “The kids are the key to everything.”

Edwards, the Union High defensive coordinator, took over interim head coaching duties for the team’s 12-0 victory over Graham High School in the regional semifinals on November 22. 

Turner went missing on November 20, last seen by members of his family disappearing into the woods behind his home while carrying a firearm. 

On November 25, the Virginia State Police revealed Turner had been charged with five counts of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor.  

Turner’s oldest son, Bailey, is a physical education teacher and member of the football coaching staff at Union, and was on the sidelines for the school’s win in the regional finals. 

Bailey, 25, called the win “bittersweet,” according to the Daily Mail, and said he “appreciated the support” of the community. 

Travis and his wife, Leslie Caudill Turner, also share son Grayden, 21, and daughter Brynlee, 11. 

After Union’s win over Graham on November 22, members of the team spoke about pushing forward in the wake of their head coach’s disappearance. 

“We talked in the huddle and we said, ‘Listen boys, we’re going to have to handle adversity here,’” senior running back Keith Chandler told WCYB at the game. “We stick together as brothers here and we should come out with the victory.”

Senior tight end and defensive end Carlos Anderson told the Bristol Herald Courier, “I think we were going to play no matter what. We were ready for this game. We’ve been ready since summer and we just had to go out and execute.”

The players’ comments were made before Travis was charged with any crime. 

Union plays Glenvar High School in the Class 2 state semifinals on Saturday, December 6. 

Travis’ family issued a statement about his disappearance via their attorney to Us Weekly on Wednesday, December 3. 

“The family of Travis Turner continues to cooperate with law enforcement efforts to locate Travis,” the statement read. “Their homes and properties have been searched multiple times, with their consent. While the family’s last contact with Travis causes them to have great concern for his well being, they cling to the hope he will be found and afforded the opportunity to defend himself in a court of law.”

The statement concluded, “If Travis has the ability and is able to respond to his family’s wishes; your wife and children are in distress. Leslie pleads for you to come home and face the allegations by defending yourself in a court of law. Don’t leave your family to fight this battle without you. They love and miss you.  They want you to know they are your support.”