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Ex-NC State Athletes Allege Sexual Abuse by Longtime Trainer Robert Murphy

The new accounts sharpen scrutiny of NC State's response to earlier warnings.

Overview

  • An ESPN report this week detailed accounts from 11 former NC State athletes who say trainer Robert Murphy inappropriately touched their genitals and required near-nude drug tests under his watch.
  • Nine of the men who spoke to ESPN are suing the university, and the civil case now lists 31 total plaintiffs.
  • A 2022 complaint by former soccer player Ben Locke led to a Title IX finding that Murphy’s treatment was unwelcome, sexual, pervasive, and sufficiently severe.
  • Investigators were told that concerns reached athletics leaders as early as 2014 to 2016, yet Murphy remained on staff until 2022.
  • A state criminal investigation is active, NC State has issued a brief safety statement with no further comment, and no criminal conviction has been reported.