Ex-Colts quarterback Art Schlichter, 65, pleads guilty to felony cocaine possession

INDIANAPOLIS — Former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Art Schlichter pleaded guilty Monday to felony drug possession charges that stem from a 2024 traffic stop where Schlichter handed over a crack pipe to police, who then found cocaine in his car.

Schlichter was sentenced to two years of community control, also known as probation, by Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Chris Brown. Schlichter will be required to have weekly drug tests as part of his community control sentence.

Schlichter, 65, was expected to enter the guilty plea at an Aug. 11 hearing, but was unable to attend due to health issues.

In 2020, Schlichter spoke exclusively with IndyStar from behind prison bars at the Federal Correctional Institute in Florence, Colorado. He said he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and suffered from dementia.

Schlichter, who was picked fourth overall in the NFL draft by the Baltimore Colts in 1982, has battled a gambling and drug addiction most of his adult life that has led to years in federal prison.

The latest incident that led to Schlichter’s plea hearing Monday took place in February 2024 when an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper noticed a vehicle driven by Schlichter sitting near East Hudson Street and Hamilton Avenue in Columbus, Ohio.

As the trooper approached Schlichter’s car, he handed the officer a crack pipe, according to the criminal complaint. Schlichter’s car was searched and small white rocks believed to be crack cocaine were found, according to court documents.

“A continued sad testament to the depths of his problems,” Ron O’Brien, former Franklin (Ohio) County prosecutor who fought to keep Schlichter in prison, told IndyStar in 2024, “and the system’s inability to prevent or properly punish.”

At the time of that incident, Schlichter was serving probation for cocaine charges in June 2022 after Schlichter was found unresponsive in a hotel room near Hilliard, Ohio.

According to court documents, police responded to a report of an overdose at the Hampton Inn on Lyman Drive in. Officers could not get Schlichter, 62, to respond.

He was resuscitated with the help of Narcan, a nasal spray used for the treatment of a known or suspected opioid overdose that includes signs of breathing problems. Schlichter was then taken to the hospital.

Inside Schlichter’s hotel room, officers found a substance they believed to be cocaine.

Less than a year before he was found in the hotel, Schlichter had been released from prison, where he served time for a sports ticket scheme that bilked victims out of millions of dollars.

A sad downfall

Schlichter was born to John (Max) and Mila Schlichter on April 25, 1960, with the gift of raw athleticism, no matter the sport. By four years old, he could dribble a basketball, really dribble it, not just bounce it. By junior high, he was the pride of his school basketball team. He once scored 47 of his team’s 49 points.

As a sophomore at Miami Trace High School in Washington Court House, Ohio, Schlichter was rated the top high school quarterback in the country. His team went 29-0-1. He was also an all-state guard in basketball.

Schlichter went on to play at Ohio State from 1978 to 1981, where he racked up 7,547 passing yards and 50 touchdown passes, with 46 interceptions. He also rushed for 1,303 yards and 35 touchdowns. At the time, Schlichter was Ohio State’s all-time leader in total offense.

While at Ohio State, Schlichter told IndyStar in 2020, he was consumed with gambling, placing bets on horses and college basketball. By the spring of his junior season, he was thousands of dollars in debt, he said.

After being drafted by the Baltimore Colts in 1982, Schlichter was gambling big money. From January to March of 1983, Schlichter reportedly lost $389,000 to Baltimore-area bookies. In May, it was reported that the FBI had launched an investigation into Schlichter’s gambling at Ohio State.

Weeks later, just over a year after being that first-round pick, NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle suspended Schlichter from the league indefinitely.

“Schlichter will not be reinstated,” Rozelle said, ”until the league can be solidly assured that the serious violations of cardinal NFL rules he has committed will not be repeated.”

After Schlichter agreed to go to treatment and more details emerged, Rozelle suspended Schlichter for 13 months. He was reinstated in June 1984 and returned to the Colts active roster. The following season, the Colts waived him after five games and, in 1986, he joined the Buffalo Bills as a free agent.

During his NFL career, playing in parts of three seasons, Schlichter appeared in 13 games, primarily as a backup. He made six starts and did not win any of those games. He threw 202 passes for 91 completions, three touchdown passes and 11 interceptions.

In 2010, NFL Network listed Schlichter as the No. 4 draft bust of all time and a top 10 quarterback draft bust of all time.

Once gambling got a hold of him, football didn’t matter. Schlichter’s addiction spiraled out of control. He would spend time in nearly 50 different prisons and jails. Through the years, Schlichter has been guilty of felony drug charges, gambling and financial fraud.

In his 2020 interview from prison with IndyStar, Schlichter did not offer any remorse only saying he had “been treated unfairly by the courts and prosecutors” all of his life.

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on X: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.  

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Former Colts quarterback Art Schlichter pleads guilty to felony cocaine charges