Report: Two Baylor Football Players Are Connected To Sexual Assault Investigation [Update]

Two redshirt Baylor football team freshmen are under investigation in connection with a sexual assault report involving members of the university’s equestrian team, according to KWTX in Texas.

The sexual assault reportedly happened the night of Nov. 11, following a Baylor loss to Texas Tech in Arlington. From the report:

Baylor’s online crime log says the incident was reported on Nov. 14 as “Alcohol-Minors Consuming/Sexual Assault,” and was referred to the school’s Judicial Affairs and Title IX offices, but two heavily redacted police reports obtained by KWTX say only that campus officers took a report of a sexual assault.

KWTX says that both the woman who filed the complaint, called Jane Doe 2, and the woman described as a victim, Jane Doe, are students, while “four to five sources familiar with the incident” say both women are part of the school’s equestrian team. The report also says that four students were interviewed as suspects and, according to the KWTX sources, at least two are football players.

Baylor has a long, troubled history of antagonism toward women who have accused its football players of sexual assault, which was made public in a 2016 investigation that found that the football staff actively refused to report sexual assault allegations, discouraged complainants from reporting, and—when it did investigate—did so in an improper, biased manner. Head coach Art Briles, athletic director Ian McCaw, and school president Ken Starr all eventually left Baylor as a result of the scandal.

[ KWTX]

Update (3/14, 1:05 p.m. ET): Coach Matt Rhule said that the two players, who remain unnamed, have been suspended. McLennan County District Attorney’s office is still weighing whether or not to bring criminal charges.