USA Today published a story on Wednesday detailing allegations against NFL running back Derrius Guice. Two women claimed he raped them after nights of heavy drinking during his time at LSU and that they reported the assault to two coaches. However, head coach Ed Orgeron denies any previous knowledge of the allegations.
The LSU coach, who was the interim head coach at the time of the alleged incidents, took to Twitter and released a statement. He detailed a conversation with an unnamed player about the alleged assault but denied a cover-up. The player was allegedly the boyfriend of one of the women and told USA Today about an alleged conversation with Orgeron. According to the unnamed player, the head coach allegedly told him that he shouldn’t be bothered by the incident.
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“The anonymous quote attributed to me by a former player in USA Today is not accurate. Out of respect for the young man’s privacy, I will not reveal the full details of the conversation,” Orgeron wrote on Twitter. “What I will say is that a player came into my office to discuss transferring from our program. We also discussed the player’s relationship challenges with his girlfriend. I told him what I would tell my own sons: ‘We all experience heartbreak growing up. Do not throw away a promising academic and football career at LSU because of a personal obstacle.’ Any insinuation that I had knowledge of Derrius Guice and his girlfriend is completely false.
“The sexual assault allegations made against Derrius Guice should be taken very seriously and the alleged victims must be heard and supported. I will always stand up for what is right and without question, I have complied — and will continue to comply — with all university Title IX protocols and procedures.”
In the USA Today story, reporter Kenny Jacobs explained that he had spoken to both alleged victims and that they did not report the alleged incidents to law enforcement at the time. However, they claimed that they told “two LSU coaches, an athletics administrator and a nurse” and that the school did not investigate the claims. One victim also claimed that the school emailed her and acknowledged that it was aware of the incident and that she could receive treatment at the university health center.
The alleged victim said that she received treatment and spoke to the nurse about the incident. The nurse allegedly asked if she was planning on pursuing a complaint against Guice, but she said no due to the running back “being so violent.” The nurse allegedly responded by saying “He’s like a god around here. It probably would get pushed under the rug.”
The other alleged victim, a former LSU tennis player, reportedly spoke to an attorney of the Washington Football Team one day prior to Guice’s arrest on charges of assault and battery and destruction of property. She spent 3.5 hours on a Zoom call, speaking about her allegations against the running back. The NFL team released Guice the following day after his arrest.
