Subscribe
Follow Us
Ashley Scoggin, a former player for the Nebraska women's basketball team, has filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging negligence by the school's athletic department in handling an inappropriate sexual relationship with an assistant coach. The lawsuit, which implicates head coach Amy Williams, athletic director Trev Alberts, the university's Board of Regents and former associate head coach Chuck Love, accuses them of failing to act upon and prevent a relationship that left Scoggin feeling coerced.
Filed in U.S. District Court, Scoggin's lawsuit claims that the relationship, which began with Love taking a special interest in Scoggin, turned sexual and led to her fearing retaliation if she did not comply. It further criticizes the university for not having adequate policies or training to prevent such relationships and accuses the administration of trying to avoid scandal rather than protect its student-athlete.
Her attorney, Maren Chaloupka, described the situation as a disturbing and serious issue of predatory behavior in collegiate athletics. Chaloupka suggested that the university should have been better prepared to prevent and address it.
“It's a very troubling and serious subject of predatory coaches that pursue sexual relationships with student-athletes,” Chaloupka said, per the Associated Press. “There's an enormous imbalance of power between the professional coach and student-athletes. This is something that was well known in 2022.
Article Continues Below
“Certainly Division I universities that operate at the top level are well aware of the harm that comes from this kind of a predatory situation, and there's a strong onus on the university and on the coaches to prevent this from happening and, heaven forbid it does happen, to address is correctly.”
Scoggin spent two years playing for the Cornhuskers before being removed from the team on the same day Love was put on paid suspension in February 2022. Love stepped down from her position three months afterward. Scoggin has since joined UNLV's team.
According to the complaint, Scoggin's relationship with Love became public through a controversial incident involving team members who devised a plan to catch and confront Scoggin in Love's hotel room. The lawsuit further accuses Williams and Alberts of failing to implement training or establish policies to prevent sexual relationships between staff members and athletes. It argues that this omission “was so reckless that misconduct involving sexual misconduct by coaches was inevitable as of September 2021.”
