Butch Jones waves to fans as he celebrates with his team after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half at Neyland Stadium last year. Tennessee won 38-31. Photo Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports
Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart rallied behind football coach Butch Jones at a news conference on Thursday in the midst of a sexual assault scandal at the school.
Jones has denied allegations that he labeled one of his players a traitor after the player came to the aid of a woman who said she was raped by two other players on the team.
“I trust Butch Jones implicitly,” said Hart, who hired Jones in 2012. “I know who he is. I know his work ethic. I know what he’s meant to this program and what he’s meant to this university. I know how he’s represented this university.”
According to a filing in a lawsuit against the university’s athletic department, Jones said sophomore wide receiver Drae Bowles “betrayed the team” after the November 2014 incident. The suit alleges that after Bowles broke down crying, Jones later called back and apologized, the Tennessean reported.
In an amended lawsuit, Bowles said he was punched in the mouth by teammate Curt Maggitt because he helped the woman and later was confronted by teammates Geraldo Orta and Marlin Lane. Bowles transferred to Tennessee-Chattanooga after the season.
Hart refused to discuss details of the lawsuit during the news conference. Two new plaintiffs have joined the federal lawsuit for a total of eight.
“Obviously, we are concerned,” Hart said. “I think one is too many. We have 130 football players and I have the opportunity on a regular basis to interact with them. We have a lot of real good people.”
In the lawsuit, the school is alleged to have shown more leniency in disciplining student-athletes.
“We encourage victims to come forward,” Hart said. “It is my hope the amount of publicity generated in recent days will not discourage victims from coming forward. The guilty parties should immediately be dealt with and prosecuted. …
“Our student-athletes are treated like any other member of the student body and that’s the way it should be. The only difference, and we preach it to them on a very regular basis, is they are the most visible university ambassadors.”
Jones released a statement through the university on Wednesday, saying, “The assertion that I ever attempted to belittle or demean a young man for taking action to help another person is absolutely false.
“To the contrary, I did all I could to assist the former student in question. During the course of the judicial process, campus officials, as well as the young man’s own words, will clearly establish that I have done nothing wrong. I will fight all of these false attacks on my character, and I know that once this process has been completed, my reputation will be affirmed.”
Hart defended his department against charges of Title IX rights violations and a “hostile sexual environment.”
“I’m proud of the culture we have here, but I also understand it is part of our responsibility to take a leadership role in what is a national problem,” Hart said. “We know we’re not perfect. We’re far from it.”
