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Butch Jones Defended By University Of Tennessee AD Amid Lawsuit

Embattled University of Tennessee football coach Butch Jones is at the center of a high-profile lawsuit brought against the educational institution by six women. According to the accusers, the univers...
Butch Jones Defended By University Of Tennessee AD Amid Lawsuit
Written by Val Powell
  • Embattled University of Tennessee football coach Butch Jones is at the center of a high-profile lawsuit brought against the educational institution by six women. According to the accusers, the university has created an environment that enabled male athletes – especially football players – to sexually assault women without consequences.

    On February 6, six unidentified women who claim to have been sexually assaulted or raped by football or basketball players filed Title IX charges in a Nashville District Court, alleging that Jones’ athletic department forged a culture of rape on campus that tolerated sexual offenses by student-athletes.

    The most recent development took place on Wednesday, when former UT Volunteers wide receiver Drae Bowles made a sworn statement saying that in November 2014, Butch Jones scolded him for being a “traitor” and “betraying the team” after helping out a female athlete who had allegedly been raped by fellow football players A.J. Johnson and Michael Williams. The two athletes were charged for the offenses and are due to go to trial this summer.

    In a statement issued through the university, Jones said that the allegations are “false attacks on his character.”

    “The assertion that I ever attempted to belittle or demean a young man for taking action to help another person is absolutely false,” Jones said.

    University of Tennessee’s athletic director, Dave Hart spoke to reporters during a packed press conference held at the campus’ Ray and Lucy Hand Digital Center on Thursday. He came to Jones’ defense and essentially said that he has full confidence in the coach’s credibility and integrity.

    “I trust Butch Jones implicitly,” Hart said. “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.”

    He also defended the student culture at UT, vouching for Butch Jones and their other athletic coaches.

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