The reports to campus officials late last year revealed disturbing allegations about players from San Diego State University’s winning football team.
Claims were rapidly spreading among the school’s athletes that five players had raped an unconscious girl and left her bloodied and bruised at a house party off campus.
“I am very scared and worried that nothing is being done about this,” one student-athlete told university officials in a message sent through an anonymous reporting system, which was reviewed by The Times along with other internal campus records in the case.
Now, more than seven months after the alleged Oct.16 incident, San Diego State officials have not launched an internal investigation or student disciplinary proceeding, both of which are intended in part to help protect students and employees from those found to have engaged in sexual misconduct. Nor have they alerted the campus that police are investigating a reported sexual assault involving students and provided information for potential witnesses to contact authorities.
Two athletes sent messages through the anonymous reporting system, which was reviewed by SDSU’s executive associate athletic director and deputy Title IX coordinator, per The Times.
One athlete provided the name of one of the players, a senior. Both athletes who reported were not at the party, per The Times.
“99% of the football players are aware of the 5-person rape so the rest of the student-athletes are left wondering why nothing is being done,” the student said, according to records obtained by The Times. They added, “Every person in authority here at SDSU needs to be aware of this, including [San Diego State President] Adela de la Torre.”
At the time of the alleged rape by football players, the San Diego State Aztec football team was riding a six-game winning streak in one of its best seasons in years. The team finished with a 12-2 record and was ranked 25th in the nation in the final Associated Press poll. Next fall, the Aztec squad is scheduled to play in its new home — an estimated $310-million stadium that will be a centerpiece of an ambitious multibillion-dollar campus development project.
Cal State records reviewed by The Times show that officials said the alleged rape occurred on Oct. 16, one day after the football team beat rival San Jose State in a Friday night game.