College football players charged with animal abuse on social media video

Two former college football players at the University of Buffalo are facing animal cruelty charges after a video posted to social media allegedly shows them injuring a dog. 

Blake Hiligh and Zach Pilarcek were arraigned in New York and face one count of overdriving, torturing, and injuring animals, in addition to a misdemeanor charge of failure to provide proper sustenance, Erie Co. (N.Y.) District Attorney John Flynn said.

If convicted of the charges, the two face a maximum of one year in jail.

The attorney's office said that Hiligh and Pilarcek beat a dog with a leather belt and that a video of the alleged action was posted on social media. Spectrum 1 News in Buffalo obtained the video in question and confirmed the actions portrayed in it.

SPCA, an animal welfare organization in the area, received a report of the incident and the next day took the dog, a four-year old miniature poodle, into their care.

Buffalo football coach Maurice Linguist said he suspended the two players after hearing of the incident and then dismissed them from the team.

"The UB football program has zero tolerance for this type of behavior," Linguist said. "At UB, not only do we expect our student-athletes to excel on the field and in the classroom, but we also expect them to be outstanding citizens in our community."

Neither player appears on the Buffalo football team's roster at present. Hiligh, played in one game last season at cornerback. Pilarcek is a tight end, but didn't play last year.

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