Brady Hoke, the head football coach at San Diego State, admitted on Monday that he was unaware that star punter Matt Araiza had been charged with taking part in a gang rape of a 17-year-old girl in October until a civil action was brought last week.
John David Wicker, the athletic director at the institution where Hoke works, defended the administration’s choice to comply with the San Diego Police Department’s request to postpone a campus-led investigation into the alleged gang rape until investigators are done with their criminal probe.
The incident took place on a Halloween party in October 17, at a house where Araiza had previously resided.
Araiza, known as the “Punt God,” was released by the Buffalo Bills on Saturday, two days after the civil lawsuit containing graphic details was filed against him and his former teammates Zaver Leonard and Nowlin “Pa’a” Ewaliko.
His booming kicks helped SDSU to a school-best 12-2 season, earning him the nickname and recognition as a consensus All-American. According to Wicker, Leonard and Ewaliko are no longer on the team.
At a Monday news conference, Wicker and Hoke made an effort to avoid being asked about the alleged gang rape. They offered to field questions regarding SDSU’s upcoming game versus Arizona on Saturday by reading brief statements and providing information.
Wicker and Hoke left as reporters persisted in asking about the matter. Wicker, though, came back after a while and started responding to inquiries.
“I still firmly believe that allowing SDPD to handle the investigation of this was the right way to go,” Wicker said. “SDPD asked us not to investigate because they felt like it would impede or potentially impact negatively their investigation, so we chose to do that.”
Backlash from the actions taken by SDSU
Brenda Tracy, a rape survivor and public speaker who was invited by SDSU to address the football team and other male players nearly three weeks after the alleged assault, questioned the school’s choice to cooperate with the SDPD.
An SDSU employee had informed Tracy, according to a statement she put on Twitter on Sunday night, “that there was an event that had happened.”
Tracy added, “it is becoming more obvious that SDSU did not do the right thing. Institutions should not defer to police investigations. Title IX and criminal cases can run concurrently. … Even without the victim directly reporting to the school, her father did, and the school could have reached out to him. Anonymous tips, one of which included a name, should have been followed up on immediately.”
Police have not made any arrests or made any suspects publicly known. The district attorney will decide whether to press charges based on the findings of the police investigation, but there is no deadline for that decision.
On July 22, the SDPD reportedly gave SDSU permission to launch an investigation on campus. According to the Los Angeles Times, at least one anonymous report made by student-athletes to San Diego State officials on the rape allegation included Araiza’s name within days after the party.
When the Buffalo Bills fired Matt Haack last week, Araiza was slated to take over as their punter, but the team later changed its mind. Mitch Morse, the team’s center, defended how they handled the circumstance.
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