university of rochester football scandaluniversity of rochester football scandal

As he sat there in the shower watching his blood pour down the drain, Kollias had no idea that it was all connected to his football team. I feel that this is at least one small part that I can do for them.". Speaking on the condition of anonymity because he had committed a crime by purchasing the drugs, the former player says Smith told him "he had connections in New York City" and could "get whatever I needed. The lawsuit alleges "Smith made one or more calls to U of R football coaches from Monroe County Jail to discuss his arrest and bail" but never called Kyle while incarcerated over Thanksgiving weekend in 2015. Commitment to student-athletes and their academic success, as well as athletic . Smith grew up in a tough situation -- housing was unstable -- but developed into a good student at Park East High School, earning MVP honors in three straight seasons. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. Crashing at his buddy Lydell Strickland's house at the time, Rivera shared the few details he knew with his 26-year-old roommate: All of the attackers were African-American men; it went down in the seventh-floor student apartment; and it involved a University of Rochester football player. Who won the spring transfer cycle? Between 30% and 50% of those relate to sex or gender as the protected . Investigators are looking into why Kollias and Ewo were targeted. Says Violette: "We just had fun and played to win.". Smith had already left school soon after his arrest, though the university will not say whether he withdrew or was expelled. E:60 showcases the best in longform television journalism. He and his friend from the football team, the one who lived in the seventh-floor apartment, were hanging out at their frat house. Between 30% and 50% of those relate to sex or gender as the protected class, as opposed to race, national origin or other areas, according to the university's general counsel, Gail Norris. Off the field, though, Kollias avoided Smith. ); The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy. Both Hughes and Gigliotti said Strickland took Rivera's plan for revenge beyond their expectations. ", Another former Rochester player tells Outside the Lines that he bought marijuana from Smith several times. Michigan football continued its momentum on the recruiting trail Tuesday with a commitment from Rochester Adams . University of Rochester students Ani Okeke Ewo, left, and Nicholas Kollias are seen in undated photos distributed by authorities after their abduction.(AP). What No. While Burnham did not respond to repeated requests for comment, Bronson did tell Outside the Lines, "I have been advised to make no comment as it regards to a pending legal proceeding; other than to state that neither K.J. In his first year at Rochester, the team went 5-4 and Smith made 80 tackles, most on the team. The private university itself is accused of protecting Jaeger, even going so far as to retaliate against those who complained about his behavior before relief was sought from the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Smith was taken to jail but did not spend much time there. I'll just call back on Monday." Kollias does remember university President Joel Seligman sending an email to students. ", "I had three or four blood transfusions," Kollias says. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 4/4/2023), Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/26/2023). "One of the biggest struggles is that you never really know how well you're doing, and it's not clear what happens if you're deemed to not be making good progress," she said. He laughed when a judge sentenced him to 155 years in prison. "Celeste is so accomplished and so young, and she does a lot of what I want to do. Humphreys allegedly retaliated, failing him on back-to-back recitals just months beforehe won the America Protg International Competition and performed at Carnegie Hall for the second time. A college dean warned Irrera that prospective employers would seek out Humphreys for a reference and school officials couldnt protect him,Irrera said. His lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for "reputational harm (and) emotional distress"allegedly caused by the school. "Nighttime and being alone are definitely harder things for me," he says. It was not known how many involve graduate students. ", Kollias says he believes none of this would have happened if the university had cracked down on Smith's earlier drug activities -- and if the Division III coaches he played for weren't so blinded by Smith's football talent. You have /5 articles left.Sign up for a free account or log in. In January of 1927, after a Big Ten meeting in Chicago attended by the university presidents, athletic directors, faculty representatives, and football coaches, the Conference announced the adoption of a set of specific regulations concerning the recruiting of ath-letes by university personnel and also addressed alumni involvement in the process. Sept. 12:SoFi CEO to leave immediately after sexual harassment claims Sept. 12:How Brie Larson tackles subtle sexual harassment in 'Unicorn Store'. It was as bad as a horror movie. Football - University of Rochester Athletics The official Football page for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets The official Football page for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets The official Football page for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets Skip To Main Content Pause All Rotators ", In an email, Kyle's attorney, Brendan Reyes, clarified that "it was Mr. Kyle's belief and understanding that the players had arranged to pay the bail bondsman and that one of the coaches would sign the bond. "It was special. An Outside the Lines investigation that published and aired in June revealed how the two players were brutally tortured for more than 40 hours as payback for a drug robbery committed by a third Rochester football player, Isaiah Smith, a star linebacker. They were playing beer pong, Kollias recalls, when his teammate told him, "I have these two girls that want to meet up with us.". Not wanting to go alone, she brought Leah Gigliotti with her. They surgically removed glass from my eardrum and scalp and skull." "I noticed that the neighborhood started getting kind of bad," he says. The terms upon which a candidate receives a doctorate are vague from the beginning. Her profile picture on Facebook showed a 19-year-old woman with big eyelashes, large hoop earrings and rose tattoos on both shoulders. In her testimony, Gigliotti said that she and Hughes were in the front seat, Strickland in the back. "It was an accomplishment that everyone on the team . Lees has been with the team for 10 years and has served as defensive coordinator since 2012, according to his official university biography. Rochester hasnt won more than five games in a season the past nine years and is 2-3 this season. On Sunday morning, the masked men cranked up the music before entering the room where Kollias was being held. We can now put this particular issue behind us, focus on our present concerns, and look ahead to the future., Steven Modica, Jaegers attorney, underscored that Jaeger was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit and had no involvement in the settlement. He could hear the men in the room next door, laughing, smoking weed and maybe still wearing those terrifying plastic masks. Previously, a jury convicted Smith for ten counts of robbery and burglary that investigators believe eventually led to the kidnapping and torture of two of his teammates on the football team.. "Just came in extremely angry," Kollias remembers. Follow Lauren Peace and Brian Sharp on Twitter:@LaurenMPeace and@SharpRoc. "But they said, 'We don't want money; we want blood.'". As Becca Canale, a third-year undergraduate student in theBrain and Cognitive Sciences program, walked into herpsycholinguistics seminar on the first day of class in August, she prepared herself for the semester ahead. Bronson and Smith were once college roommates, according to two sources familiar with the case. He couldn't even see their mouths move as they screamed for revenge. We have now settled our case. The University of Rochester is looking forward after an independent investigation into sexual harassment claims against a professor. Aug. 21:Bro culture is under attack, but women say it's far from tamed Aug. 19:How to spot and deal with horrible bosses. The department differed from those at other universities because of its multidisciplinary makeup. Let's go be with these girls,'" Kollias says. ", Hughes, it turns out, was the girlfriend of Rivera, the man who had promised revenge. Instead, the lawsuit contends, "a higher ranking assistant coach" named Jacob Lees told Kyle about the arrest when Kyle arrived at work the following Monday. They were each sentenced to more than a dozen years in prison. His head. The officers quickly arrested at least two people who were watching over the football players. In the case at the University of Rochester,Kidd said it took her nearly a decadeuntil she was a tenured faculty member with the support of colleagues to be in a positionwhere she felt safe enough to come forward. @UofRFootball. University trustees appointed a special committee of its members back on Sept. 19, and hired high-powered special investigator Mary Jo White, former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New . Their captors had boarded up the windows, making it impossible to tell whether it was light out, but Kollias kept track of time by listening to the football games he could hear through the walls. Van Diver with a rec score. Jaeger, who came highly recommended in 2007 from Stanford and the University of California-San Diego,also conditioned access to him and his social circle on whether victims complied with his demands, according to the complainants. Later that afternoon, the lawsuit claims Kyle "received text messages from Lees thanking" Kyle "for helping to free Smith from jail." Copyright 2023 WLS-TV. It was small money, but he was one of the best football players on the team, and he could definitely be intimidating. Instead, a university spokeswoman emailed a statement. Both of his legs. Determined to rehab his mind and his body, Kollias recently ran his first road race since the attack. He says he didn't like how Smith bragged about being able to get marijuana for students. In Seligmans meeting with the Faculty Senate, also Sept. 19, he said the forthcoming investigation would be "highly unbounded," opening the door to also taking on a separate sexual harassment and retaliation complaint emanating from the university's Eastman School of Music. The university investigated, promoted Jaeger to full professor over Aslin's objections, cleared Jaeger of any wrongdoing, then allegedly retaliated against Aslin and the complainants when they appealed. she asked. Strickland withdrew thousands of dollars before he went on a shopping spree that weekend, which included a $799 leather jacket, Timberland boots and a $27.99 pair of jeans from Marshalls. In recordings obtained by Outside the Lines, Kollias asks a Charles Schwab customer service agent to help him transfer money to his checking account. The university president largely has been sidelined, a move he said was mutually agreed upon with trustees "given concerns raised about a potential lack of objectivity in any administration-sponsored effort. When the dealers attempted to retaliate, they allegedly assumed Ewo, who was out of town and unaware of the incident, and Kollias were part of it. The plaintiffs also alleged retaliation by other faculty members and administrators for blowing the whistle on their colleague and instructor. ", Kyle claims he accompanied his fellow assistant coach "in Lees' car to the Monroe County Hall of Justice," but "Lees had difficulty finding parking," according to the lawsuit. In the video, Rivera is holding a sawed-off .22-caliber rifle and standing over Kollias' teammate lying facedown in a pool of blood on the bathroom floor. Updated: Apr 9, 2018 / 06:54 PM EDT. Two of Smith's teammates and friends allegedly gathered the bail money -- about $1,500 -- for Kyle, who ultimately signed the papers for Smith's release. If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. To help sell the ruse, the three attackers -- who have never been identified -- struck Smith, too, but only lightly, never hitting him with the hammer. Reyes also played football for Rochester under Greene about a decade ago. As much as I would need." He could no longer feel that leg and couldn't see it because so much blood kept pouring into his eyes from his scalp, over which they had smashed a long, fluorescent lightbulb. "He had the size; he had the speed; and he just changed the game for our team," Kollias says. Kidd alleged sexual harassment from Jaeger, her superior for years, that she said continued because of the substantial power differential that existed between them, according to the federal complaint filed Aug. 30. "They started shooting everywhere and putting the gun into our mouths and up to my skin and just shooting and pulling away at the last second. On Thursday, the special committee announced it would add a faculty and graduate student membersand that the investigative findings report would be made public, unedited, the same day it is received. Three of the seven complainants have left, and four others are considering following suit. (); : Surveillance video from an ATM less than a mile from where Kollias was being held would later show Gigliotti's blue Dodge Dart pulling up to the machine. Kollias says Hughes pulled up in a blue Dodge Dart with her friend, 20-year-old Leah Gigliotti, sitting in the passenger seat. By Saturday night, campus police had turned over their investigation to the Rochester PD, a bigger force with more resources. It was only then, when the blood just wouldn't stop from that last blow, that they halted their attack and threw him in the shower. 1. He wasn't related to any of the men injured in the hammer attack but helped Rivera plan the retaliation. Someday we might have, but that day came earlier than expected.". He put all of the officers investigating the kidnapping and the hammer attack into the same room to share what they knew while simultaneously mobilizing his SWAT team. Brady Prieskorn, 4-star TE from Rochester Adams, picks Michigan football for 2024. He made it about halfway across the room before he felt his left leg shatter. In his lawsuit filed in late August and served to the university within the past week, Dan Kyle is suing school spokeswoman Sara Miller and the university for defamation. We had great labs, great students and great colleagues," said Cantlon, who said that she, too, is looking for faculty positions at other universities. When asked for comment about the lawsuit, Miller wrote in an email that the university and its employees, including Greene, Seligman, Lees and herself, "will not be commenting on pending or active legal matters.". Investigators said at a news conference the pair were kidnapped and held against their will. Instead, his lawsuit details what he claims happened in the minutes and days afterward. | Website designed by nclud, Higher Education News, Opinion and Careers | Weekdays, Quick Summary of the Week's Higher Ed News | Fridays, Admissions and Enrollment News, Opinion and Careers | Mondays, Diversity News, Opinion and Career Advice | Tuesdays, Student Success News, Ideas, Advice and Inspiration | Weekdays, Connecticut State System Warns of Devastating Cuts, GWU Students Protest Arming Campus Police, Adaptation Across the Higher Ed Landscape: A Special Report, Bennet Supports Debt-Free College in Education Plan. Scott Greene, the team's head coach, also called Kyle that day, "and thanked him for signing Smith's bond," according to Kyle's complaint. He followed general manager Bill Polian to Indianapolis, where he was the teams fullback in 1998 and 1999. Niko Kollias watched his blood swirl down the bathtub drain. Rivera had actually tapped out many of the text messages sent from Hughes' phone to Kollias' teammate, luring him into the meetup. That's when they said they were going to kill us. "As we are searching for these kids, there were hours and hours of lies, untruths, misleading statements," Ciminelli says. "And that's when I started getting nervous." "We had everything going for us. During Lydell Strickland's trial in December 2016, prosecutors described him as the "ringleader" and "mastermind" of the plot. That same day, Kollias says the masked men put a gun to his head and demanded he call his bank. Kyle says he got a ride back with the two sophomore players. ABC7 New York 24/7 Eyewitness News Stream. university President Joel Seligman announced he will resign next month so that a new leader can focus on healing the campus. "But it was a little weird, especially on the first day.". Edited by Liz O. Baylen and Mike Benoist. I regret that the regular order of our Faculty Senate appears to have been violated by the public release of these minutes.". One of his favorite pieces is Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata." Kollias didn't know. The surveillance cameras show some of the hammer victims walking out of the building using their shirts to stanch the bleeding from their heads. But within minutes, they pulled into the driveway of a two-story house. The harassment tends to be not just verbal but physical, and offenders often are serial harassers, according to the survey in which more than 150,000 students responded. Grading big trades during the NFL draft: Who won the D'Andre Swift deal? The attackers recorded some of their assault on a cellphone. Rochester Police Department. Instead, the three men Smith had waved at came crashing through the apartment door, according to police reports, spraying the drug suppliers with pepper spray and hitting them in the head with a hammer before taking off with the 4 pounds of marijuana. All rights reserved (About Us). The last few years have been challenging for everyone at the university, and we now face significant additional challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rochester said. That is rare. After his piano audition, "I thought I would never make the cut in a million years," he says. Now we have to shut it all down and build it up somewhere else.". The story of the Cowboys scout and prospect son Dallas just drafted, Kidnapped and tortured: One college football player's unbelievable story, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Auburn partners with St. Joe's and University of Rochester Medical Center. "In light of recent events, bothstudents and colleagues are telling many of us that they have come to expect sexual harassmentto be a normal and unavoidable part of academic life," read an open letter to the Linguistic Society of America. All he knew was that they had shot and then beaten him for more than three hours. Kollias told ESPN they were lured to a home for what they thought was a Saturday night house party. Signers include 1,100 academics and professionals from across the USA and at least two dozen other countries. "My sister is in grad school right now (at a different university), and she said that the same stuff happens," Handsman said. Detectives said the investigation is ongoing. Police Chief Michael Ciminelli, a Rochester native with 12 years of experience with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, says he believes not being able to transfer money on the weekend might have saved Kollias' life. "This was an unusual occurrence.". "It was something that never leaves you, that binds you to other members of the team," Parrinello says. July 14:Women of color in STEM face greater risks of gender harassment July 3:Fox Sports boss Jamie Horowitz is out amid sexual harassment inquiry, In his email Friday,Jaeger addressed his continued commitment to his students:"I will try my best to continue to support my students/post-docs research and careers, and to help them navigate the uncertainties of the current situation. The lawsuit takes direct aim at President Joel Seligman and Provost Robert Clark. Listen to this special OTL for E:60 podcast, where Ryan Smith talks to correspondent, Tisha Thompson, and producer, Andy Lockett about their harrowing story from 22 Harvest Street. Instead, they were abducted. 25 Apr 2023 19:15:48 None called back. But who were they? Lawmakers and higher ed leaders are facing off over the proposed state budget. "They start saying that I had been lying to them, and the cards weren't working anymore, and they couldn't get any more money. "And it is different in kind than any of us have faced.". When Kollias and his teammate got into the back seat, Hughes passed back the liquor and shifted into drive. ", The side entrance of 22 Harvest St. after the Rochester police SWAT team blew the door off. June 29:Sexual harassment scandal shakes influential venture capital world June 13:Uber board member makes sexist remark during meeting on sexism. The team has lost just two games this season, to the University of Chicago by 3 points and Washington University by 5 points. "He had a reputation for wanting to be the drug dealer on campus," Kollias says. Kidd remains, for now, but isunable to complete portions of her research because of departures, she said. 2 prospect in the state. This right here." Greene announced his resignation, effective at season's end, on Tuesday. College football has qualities beyond being in the public eye that propel it almost to the very top of the scandal scale. The two assistant coaches, according to Kyle, agreed that "Lees could go back to campus, as the coaches were responsible for opening the weight room for the players at 4:15 P.M." Lees drove back to the campus. Smith used it to lead the men into the room. Other officers also found the rifle, hidden in the attic. D. Papantonis with another HUGE game, 3 TD and 278 rush yards. We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here. ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Two University of Rochester football players from Illinois were rescued after they were kidnapped and held hostage in New York, police said. The ESPNspecial said Kyle signed a $15,000 bond "to bail Smith out of jail." He often finds himself looking over his shoulder in his hometown of Chicago, where he is working in finance. He says the leg always hurts -- all the way from his knee to his hip -- but the pain is worth it. What becomes of his career going forward is unclear. Cantlon, one of the complainants to come forward with Kidd, is Ferrigno's adviser. Greene and Lees did not respond to multiple requests for comment. But the court cleared the way for him to proceed with an allegation of retaliation. Three of the four men in the cellphone video recording of the torture, including Elliot Rivera, also pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 35 years in prison. Authorities said the students were targeted and there is no reason for other students at the university to be worried. That vulnerability arises because doctoral candidates, particularly those in scientific fields, spend years working in close proximity and under the supervision of one primary faculty member,according to a study published in May in the Journal of Legal Education titled "Mapping the Title IX Iceberg: Sexual Harassment (Mostly) in Graduate School by College Faculty., "You're working with a professor that really determines everything about your graduate career," said Stephen Ferrigno, a fourth-year grad student in the Brain and Cognitive Sciences department at the University of Rochester. ET Sunday on ESPN.Rochester Police Department, When Nicholas Kollias arrived on campus three years earlier, in 2012, he had two great passions: piano and football. The video is only 30 seconds long. Rebecca Handsman, another student in the class, echoed Canale's description of Jaeger's demeanor. As the judge sentenced Smith to 13 years in prison, he said, "This is all your fault. They emptied our pockets -- cellphones, wallets and car keys.". At one point, Seligman addressed them directly. She also isco-principal investigator on a $1.1 million National Science Foundation grant to combat sexual harassment on college campuses and in her field of earth and environmental science. But she said students still hold the same risks in doing so that she had years ago. The students were subsequently found. April 28, 2023. According to prosecutors, they carried with them 4 pounds of marijuana. His leg flies out at an odd angle with every step; his gait has a deep dip that wasn't there before. ", Sept. 8:Eric Bolling is latest Fox host to be ousted Sept. 7:Navy's top admiral kept spokesman after sex predator warning. "That's what really helps me cope with the negative energy, along with playing the piano. By this time, Rivera had bailed, leaving his friend who lived in the house to watch over the captives. "I was so happy," he remembers. This is a crisis," university President Joel Seligman recently acknowledged in a closed session with faculty. View the calendar for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets. The official 2022 Football schedule for the University of Rochester Yellowjackets The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. I was just covered in so much blood." They'd later say that, originally, they thought Rivera and Strickland were just going to rough up the football players. The University of Rochester has responded to an EEOC complaint against professor Florian Jaeger. When pressed for an address, Hughes told the officers that she couldn't remember but offered to drive around with them to see whether she recognized the house. "I heard stories that he knew how to work his way over on people. In a recorded conversation, Humphreys threatened Irrera that he would never get a job. University of Rochester football coach Scott Greene has announced that the 2017 season will be his final year as the team's head coach. Buffalo held 20 consecutive training camps at St. John Fisher from 2000 to 2019. After receiving a report of assault, police sent an officer to the hospital. The letter was in response to the Jaeger case but not limited to it, said the society's executive director, Alyson Reed. But the agent cannot help. Kyle also repeatedly declined request for comment before publication of the Outside the Lines investigation, which featured surveillance video showing the victims of the hammer attack covered in blood as they left an on-campus apartment building. For now, those plans required him to stay alive. with its first win of the year, defeating Alfred State 30-17! 1 NFL draft picks were like as college football recruits: Only how many five-stars?! The player declined requests for interviews and, as a crime victim, requested that he remain anonymous. At the height of its success, the University of Rochester Brain and Cognitive Sciences department was regarded as one of the top sites in the country. Greene also spoke to Kyle about setting their troubled player up with a criminal defense attorney. Three months later, in March, Isaiah Smith faced a judge for his role in orchestrating the drug robbery that started it all. "I was completely naked and just sitting in a chair and getting all this blood off me. Blood from the gunshot wounds to his legs completely saturates his khaki pants. ", Rochester Police Chief Michael Ciminelli confirms that Smith "was involved in drug dealing." "They put a titanium rod through my femur, attaching it with screws in my knee and hip.