Body of Missing Ohio State Football Player Found in Dumpster Near OSU

Columbus police have confirmed that a body found Sunday afternoon near Ohio State University is that of the Buckeye football player who has been missing since early Wednesday morning.

Kosta Karageorge, 22, apparently died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to a report Sunday at www.dispatch.com (the Columbus Dispatch’s website). Police said tattoos on the body helped them with identification.

A 911 caller reportedly notified police that a body had been found in a trash dumpster at 6th Avenue and Courtland Avenue in Columbus’ University District. Police said a preliminary examination indicated that Karageorge died of a single gunshot wound, apparently self-inflicted.

Authorities, family, friends, family and many others had been searching for Karageorge, a walk-on defensive lineman for the Ohio State Buckeyes, since he left his E. Seventh Avenue apartment around 2 a.m. Wednesday. The dumpster is not far from the apartment, police said.

Police said a gun was found in the dumpster.

According to various reports on Karageorge’s disappearance, right before he left the apartment, he texted his mother and apologized for being “an embarrassment” as a result of concussions that had his “head all f***ed up.”

Karageorge, 22, attended high school in Worthington, a suburb of Columbus, and wrestled at Ohio State for three years before joining the football game before this season. He only appeared in one game, the Dispatch reported.