Baylor Football Faces New Sexual Assault Allegations
The story that headlined sports news this week was one that elicited shock, disappointment, disgust, and anger among many. The aforementioned story is the new sexual assault lawsuit filed against Baylor University's football program, which alleges 52 rapes committed by more than 30 Baylor football players over the timespan of 2011-2014. Yes, you read that correctly. Furthermore, this doesn't even include the other 17 reports of sexual and physical attacks involving 19 players since 2011 that the school has finally acknowledged.
As a student-athlete myself, I cannot even begin to imagine how the players, much less the coaches, allowed their fellow teammates to engage in such heinous behavior. Not even mentioning the fact that these men were most likely raised with values that preach against this behavior, we, as student-athletes, attend mandatory meetings each semester/quarter that focus on this exact behavior. The fact that Baylor football coaches and school officials failed to recognize and even attempt to cover up this issue is simply overwhelming.
The University has already fired their president along with their head football coach, albeit only once the official's and coach's involvement was bought into the national media spotlight. However, with this new lawsuit being filed, I believe more serious repercussions must be employed. Not only should the Baylor football program be fined, lose scholarships, and receive a postseason ban, I feel that the death penalty to the football program must be considered. While some feel this may be too harsh of a punishment, it is clear that the punishment fits the crime. It is also important to note that a school/program can appeal this decision if it can provide substantiating evidence that the issue that warranted the penalty has been dealt with permanently. As of right now however, Baylor has no leg to stand on in this fight. This is a program that feels they are above the rules and by doing such, they create a breeding ground for a culture of sexual violence disregard for rules/morals. Until Baylor University can prove they have handled this situation for good, there is no way the football team should be allowed to take the field to represent their university, the NCAA, and student-athletes as a whole.
