Tag: lawsuit

Jan 20, 2025; Atlanta, GA, USA; The hosts of ESPN First Take, Molly Qerim, Stephen A. Smith, Shannon Sharpe and Cam Newton, at the CFP Fan Central at the George World Congress Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Report: ESPN punts Shannon Sharpe after lawsuit settlement

Posted on | by Field Level Media

ESPN parted ways with Pro Football Hall of Fame member and media personality Shannon Sharpe, according to multiple reports Wednesday.

Sharpe was last with the network in April when a former girlfriend accused Sharpe of sexual assault and filed a $50 million lawsuit.

The ESPN move comes after the woman’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, announced an out-of-court settlement on July 18 without divulging any financial figures while acknowledging a “long-term consensual and tumultuous relationship” between his client and Sharpe, 57.

Sharpe began appearing on ESPN’s “First Take” in September 2023. He signed a multi-year contract extension with the company last summer. When he stepped away in April, he called the move temporary and made it clear he intended to return to a role in national sports media.

A different allegation about Sharpe emerged in April. Front Office Sports reported he was accused of choking a female production assistant while working for Fox as the co-host of FS1’s “Undisputed.”

Per the report, Sharpe was not sued in the case, and he and Fox settled with the woman for several hundred thousand dollars. Sharpe’s camp denied that the choking incident happened.

Sharpe played 14 NFL seasons with the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens, winning three Super Bowl titles.

–Field Level Media

Jul 22, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; ACC commissioner Jim Phillips speaks to the media during ACC Media Days at Hilton Charlotte Uptown. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Commissioner bullish on ACC’s future with lawsuits settled

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Atlantic Coast Conference commissioner Jim Phillips said Tuesday he’s never felt better about his league’s future.

“We want to take another step this year,” he said at the ACC Kickoff media days in Charlotte. “The league is situated nicely right now.”

Phillips’ sunny outlook was boosted by the recent settlement of lawsuits with Florida State and Clemson, who were suing to try to leave the ACC. The sides negotiated new exit fees that would cost $165 million in 2026 before steadily decreasing to $75 million by 2030-31.

Phillips said he was proud of the way the ACC held firm during the long litigation process.

“You didn’t see us at all move this way or that way,” he said. “People said a lot of things about the league, but at the end of the day, that’s where we’re at, and (we) exercised our partnership with ESPN — which everybody said was not going to happen — through 2035-36, which gives us a platform of the ACC for the next decade.”

As the Southeastern Conference and Big Ten Conference continue to grow in power, Phillips said it’s important for the ACC to stand strong amid the constant threat of future conference realignments.

“I have a responsibility to make sure that our ACC schools want to be in this league, not just have to be in this league,” he said.

Phillips has been the ACC commissioner since 2021. Prior to that, he was the athletic director at Northwestern from 2008-21 and at Northern Illinois from 2004-08.

–Field Level Media

Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor (2), Ohio State offensive linesman Connor Smith (77) and Ohio State offensive linesman Scott Sika (72) sing Carmen Ohio after beating Ohio University during the second half of their NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium on September 18, 2010. (The Columbus Dispatch photo by Neal C. Lauron)

Former Ohio State QB’s lawsuit over lost NIL opportunities dismissed

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A lawsuit seeking compensation from the NCAA for thousands of former Ohio State athletes was dismissed.

The class action suit against the NCAA, Ohio State, the Big Ten and others brought by former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor was not done in a timely manner, according to Chief U.S. District Judge Sarah Morrison.

Pryor’s suit, filed in October, alleged that by not allowing student athletes to profit from the commercial use of their names, images and likenesses, the NCAA and other defendants violated antitrust law.

Pryor argued in the lawsuit that he “would have been one of the highest paid collegiate athletes in the country” if NIL had been legal while he was playing at Ohio State. He also claimed the NCAA and the other defendants continue to make revenue from his name, image and likeness.

Under U.S. antitrust laws, plaintiffs generally have a four-year window to bring a claim. Pryor was the quarterback at Ohio State from 2008-10.

“Mr. Pryor knew the material facts underlying his antitrust claims long before the four-year limitations period had run,” Morrison said in her ruling.

Additionally, Morrison ruled that as a public school and arm of the state, Ohio State was immune from the lawsuit.

Similar lawsuits were filed by former Southern California running back Reggie Bush, several former Michigan football players, and basketball players from Kansas and North Carolina State.

Since 2021, and under pressure from states and the courts, the NCAA has allowed student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL). Student-athletes can now be compensated for merely showing up to play and can earn a profit for spokesperson gigs, clothing and autograph sales and more.

Additionally, a legal ruling on June 6 allowed colleges to directly pay players via revenue sharing for the first time. The settlement of House v. NCAA marked the end of the NCAA’s previous model of amateurism, in which athletes were not allowed to earn money while in school. Schools can now share up to $20.5 million of their revenues with their athletes.

–Field Level Media

Mar 16, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Shannon Sharpe during the second quarter between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

Shannon Sharpe settles lawsuit over alleged sexual assault

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Shannon Sharpe reached a settlement with a woman who accused him of sexual assault during their relationship, attorney Tony Buzbee announced Friday.

The Pro Football Hall of Famer had stepped away from his television work to address the lawsuit.

Buzbee represented the woman, who used the pseudonym Jane Doe while seeking $50 million in a lawsuit filed in Nevada in April. She accused Sharpe of sexually assaulting her, battering her and using his fame to control and subjugate her while they were in a relationship.

“On April 20, 2025, The Buzbee Law Firm filed a complaint in Nevada making several allegations against Shannon Sharpe on behalf of our client. Both sides acknowledge a long-term consensual and tumultuous relationship,” Buzbee wrote on X (formerly Twitter) Friday. “After protracted and respectful negotiations, I’m pleased to announce that we have reached a mutually agreed upon resolution. All matters have now been addressed satisfactorily, and the matter is closed. The lawsuit will thus be dismissed with prejudice.”

Sharpe’s lawyer had previously said they had offered at least $10 million to settle the claim. They have characterized the accusations as “false and disruptive.”

Details of Friday’s settlement were not released, and Sharpe’s representatives have not commented.

Sharpe began appearing on ESPN’s “First Take” in September 2023. He signed a multi-year contract extension with the company last summer. When he stepped away in April, he called the move temporary and has made it clear he intends to return to a role in national sports media. But it’s unclear whether ESPN will have him back.

A different allegation about Sharpe emerged in April, when Front Office Sports reported he was accused of choking a female production assistant while working for Fox as the co-host of FS1’s “Undisputed.”

Per the report, Sharpe was not sued in the case, and he and Fox settled with the woman for several hundred thousand dollars. Sharpe’s camp denied that the choking incident happened.

–Field Level Media

Buffalo Bills Maxwell Hairston jogs to another area of the field during voluntary workout at their practice facility on May 27, 2025.

Bills No. 1 pick Maxwell Hairston named in lawsuit

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Buffalo Bills cornerback Maxwell Hairston is being sued by a woman who claims he sexually assaulted her in 2021 when he was an early enrollee at Kentucky.

Hairston, 21, was the Bills’ first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft in April, taken No. 30 overall.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky. The unidentified woman also accuses Hairston of intentional infliction of emotional distress. She is seeking a jury trial and compensatory damages.

According to the filing, which was reviewed by USA Today, the woman alleges that Hairston unexpectedly showed up at her dorm room on March 24, 2021. He told her he wanted to “hang out” with her, and the woman said she was tired and didn’t want a visitor. She said she was going to bed and walked away from the door.

Per USA Today, the woman claims in the lawsuit that Hairston followed her into her bedroom, then forced himself upon her and sexually assaulted her after she rejected his requests to have sex.

“Our client showed remarkable strength in coming forward, and we are proud to stand with her in pursuit of accountability and justice,” said Peter Flowers, one of the women’s attorneys, according to the report. “No one — regardless of their status or athletic success — is above the law.”

Before the draft, the Bills were aware of the allegations made by the woman, who had filed a report with the university.

“He’s an impeccable kid. We did a lot of research,” general manager Brandon Beane said the day after the draft. “I think all teams were aware of the Title IX thing. That was fully investigated by the school. He even volunteered to do a polygraph and had notes. It was one of those where there was zero information saying that this actually happened, to what the accusation was.

“You can’t just take someone’s account and think that’s the truth. But yes, we fully investigated that. If there was anything to that, he wouldn’t have been invited to the combine. … Every person you talk to at Kentucky, teammates, staff there, plus what we’ve done, I would say this is a heck of a young man, every person you ask. That’s unfortunate when things like that are attached to someone’s name; in this case, it doesn’t seem to be anything there.”

–Field Level Media

Wisconsin cornerback Xavier Lucas (6) is shown during the first quarter of their game against South Dakota Saturday, September 7 , 2024 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Xavier Lucas’ attorney denies alleged meeting with Miami amid Wisconsin lawsuit

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The attorney for the player at the center of a first-of-its-kind transfer tampering lawsuit by the University of Wisconsin denied the allegations of a December meeting between the player and representatives of the University of Miami, On3 reported Saturday.

“Wisconsin’s allegations that my client, Xavier Lucas, met with a Miami coach and prominent alumnus in December 2024 are false,” said Lucas’ attorney Darren Heitner, per On3.

The University of Wisconsin sued the University of Miami on Friday, formally accusing the Florida school of tampering with a football player under a financial contract with the Badgers.

Though Wisconsin’s lawsuit only refers to the player as Student Athlete A, the subject of the case is cornerback Lucas, who left Wisconsin and enrolled at Miami over the winter without ever entering the transfer portal.

It was reported at the time that Wisconsin refused to put Lucas’ name in the transfer portal. Lucas signed a two-year contract with the Badgers in December 2024 — a deal that gave the football program non-exclusive rights to use his NIL but also prohibited him from committing to enroll or participate in athletics at another school.

Lucas enrolled at Miami in January.

Wisconsin’s lawsuit alleges that a Miami staffer and a prominent alumnus of the school met with Lucas and his family and offered him money to transfer in December of 2024, which Heitner — who is an adjunct professor of NIL at the University of Miami School of Law — denied Saturday.

The decision to sue could become a watershed moment in the current era of college athletics. Never before has a university accused another of tampering with one of its athletes, who did not have contracts before the dawn of name, image and likeness rights this decade.

“While we reluctantly bring this case, we stand by our position that respecting and enforcing contractual obligations is essential to maintaining a level playing field,” the University of Wisconsin said in a statement provided to ESPN on Friday.

–Field Level Media

Wisconsin cornerback Xavier Lucas (6) is shown during the first quarter of their game against South Dakota Saturday, September 7 , 2024 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin.Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Wisconsin sues Miami over transfer tampering in a legal first

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The University of Wisconsin sued the University of Miami on Friday, formally accusing the Florida school of tampering with a football player under a financial contract with the Badgers.

The decision to sue could become a watershed moment in the current era of college athletics. Never before has a university accused another of tampering with one of its athletes, who did not have contracts before the dawn of name, image and likeness rights this decade.

“While we reluctantly bring this case, we stand by our position that respecting and enforcing contractual obligations is essential to maintaining a level playing field,” the school said in a statement provided to ESPN on Friday.

Though Wisconsin’s lawsuit only refers to the player as Student Athlete A, the subject of the case is cornerback Xavier Lucas, who left Wisconsin and enrolled at Miami over the winter without ever entering the transfer portal.

It was reported at the time that Wisconsin refused to put Lucas’ name in the transfer portal. Lucas signed a two-year contract with the Badgers in December 2024 — a deal that gave the football program nonexclusive rights to use his NIL but also prohibited him from committing to enroll or participate in athletics at another school.

Lucas enrolled at Miami in January.

Wisconsin’s lawsuit alleges that a Miami staffer and a prominent alumnus of the school met with Lucas and his family and offered him money to transfer.

–Field Level Media

Sep 6, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; A view of the ACC logo during the first half of the game between the Southern Methodist Mustangs and the Brigham Young Cougars at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

ACC, Florida State, Clemson to dismiss cases against each other

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After nearly two years of infighting, litigation involving Florida State, Clemson and the Atlantic Coast Conference is finally over.

The three sides filed to dismiss cases against one another on Tuesday, ending more than 17 months of legal battles in three different states.

The two schools and the conference approved the settlement’s terms in March, which clarified if and when Florida State and Clemson — or any other ACC member — could leave the conference.

Among the terms of the settlement, schools would keep their own TV rights as opposed to the league. On top of that, per a presentation to Clemson trustees in March, exit fees would drop annually from $165 million in fiscal year 2026 to around $75 million in 2030-31.

Florida State first sued the ACC in December 2023 (in Florida, of course) followed by Clemson (in South Carolina) as the two schools explored joining a different conference. There were growing concerns that league revenues were falling behind those of the SEC and Big Ten, not to mention the ACC falling behind competitively relative to other conferences.

The Charlotte-based ACC, in turn, filed lawsuits in North Carolina against Florida State and Clemson as it looked to enforce the “Grant of Rights” agreements and the league’s exit penalties.

The March settlement agreement also created a new avenue for the ACC to share revenue with its members as about 60 percent of conference payouts would be distributed based on TV viewership of football and men’s basketball.

“Today’s resolution begins the next chapter of this storied league and further solidifies the ACC as a premier conference,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said in a statement at the time. “As we look ahead to our collective long-term future, I want to express my deepest appreciation to the ACC Board of Directors for its ongoing leadership, patience and dedication throughout this process.

“The league has competed at the highest level for more than 70 years and this new structure demonstrates the ACC embracing innovation and further incentivizing our membership based on competition and viewership results. The settlements, coupled with the ACC’s continued partnership with ESPN, allow us to focus on our collective future — including Clemson and Florida State — united in an 18-member conference demonstrating the best in intercollegiate athletics.”

–Field Level Media

Nov 23, 2024; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Brigham Young Cougars quarterback Jake Retzlaff (12) against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Reports: BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff sued for sexual assault

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BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff was accused of sexual assault in a civil lawsuit filed Wednesday in Salt Lake (Utah) County, according to multiple media reports.

The lawsuit alleges that Retzlaff committed the assault in November 2023 at his home in Provo, Utah. The woman filing the lawsuit — listed as Jane Doe A.G. — has sued Retzlaff for alleged battery, assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

According to the lawsuit, one of the reasons for the delay between the alleged incident and the filing of the civil charges is that Provo police, when the alleged victim linked Retzlaff’s name to the assault, suggested that she stay quiet because “sexual assault victims never get justice.”

In a statement, Retzlaff attorney Mark Baute declared his client to be “factually innocent.”

“I have met him, and he is a nice young man,” said Baute, who successfully defended former NBA star Derrick Rose on federal sexual assault charges in 2016. “He is also factually innocent, and we look forward to proving that innocence. Jake’s focus this year will be on football. We don’t try cases in the media. We will respect the process and establish Jake’s innocence through the judicial system.”

The lawsuit describes Retzlaff, then 20, and the alleged victim as initiating contact via social media before Jane Doe and her friend visited Retzlaff’s home in November 2023. After a period of time, the friend left and Retzlaff and Jane Doe started to watch a movie in his room and began kissing. The lawsuit says Jane Doe did not want to go any further and asked him to “stop,” but Retzlaff eventually found a condom and assaulted her.

A few days later, she went to the hospital and a rape kit was used for purposes of gathering and preserving any potential evidence of assault. Doe also reportedly told Provo police of the incident at this time, yet did not invoke Retzlaff’s name.

BYU released a statement Wednesday: “BYU became aware today that a civil lawsuit involving Jake Retzlaff had been filed this morning. The university takes any allegation very seriously, following all processes and guidelines mandated by Title IX. Due to federal and university privacy laws and practices for students, the university will not be able to provide additional comment.”

Retzlaff, a California native who began his career playing for Riverside (Calif.) City College, transferred to BYU prior to the 2023 season. After starting the final four games of the 2023 season, Retzlaff won a training-camp battle to become the Cougars’ regular quarterback in 2024. He led them to an 11-2 record that included an Alamo Bowl win over Colorado.

He finished the year with 2,947 passing yards, 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound redshirt senior is expected to reprise his role this fall.

–Field Level Media

Mar 16, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Shannon Sharpe during the second quarter between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

Shannon Sharpe steps back from ESPN amid sexual assault lawsuit

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Shannon Sharpe announced Thursday he will step away from ESPN as he faces a sexual assault lawsuit, while a report by Front Office Sports uncovered an additional incident in which Sharpe was accused of choking a female colleague at Fox.

Sharpe was the subject of a $50 million lawsuit in Nevada earlier this week, with a woman accusing him of sexually assaulting her, battering her and using his fame to control and subjugate her while they were in a relationship.

“My statement is found here and this is the truth,” Sharpe said Thursday in what appeared to be a screenshot of a text message posted to social media. “The relationship in question was 100% consensual.

“At this juncture I am electing to step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties.

“I will be devoting this time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me. I plan to return to ESPN at the start of the NFL preseason.

“I sincerely appreciate the overwhelming and ongoing support I have received from my family, fans, friends and colleagues.”

The Pro Football Hall of Famer began appearing on ESPN’s “First Take” in September 2023. He signed a multi-year contract extension with the company last summer.

Buzbee and his client shared an audio call that is alleged to feature Sharpe threatening to “choke the (expletive) out of” her. The female voice in the call replied, “I don’t wanna be choked,” and the voice purported to be Sharpe said, “Yes, you do. I don’t think you have a choice in the matter.”

Sharpe’s attorney Lanny Davis said his client and the plaintiff were engaged in “a consensual, adult relationship that included role-playing, sexual language and fantasy scenarios.” He also said that Sharpe didn’t mean the words literally.

In a previous statement, Sharpe claimed the lawsuit is filled with “lies, distortions and misrepresentations.” He also took aim at attorney Tony Buzbee, who represents the plaintiff, saying Buzbee “targets” Black men.

Also on Thursday, Front Office Sports reported that when Sharpe worked for Fox as the co-host of FS1’s “Undisputed,” he was accused of choking a female production assistant in the workplace.

Per the report, Sharpe was not sued in the case, and he and Fox settled with the woman for several hundred thousand dollars.

“There was no incident of choking involving Shannon on the FS1 set,” a representative of Sharpe’s said in a statement to Front Office Sports. “On one occasion, he and a few colleagues were involved in some light physical interaction in a playful context. Fox Sports later chose to resolve the matter privately.”

–Field Level Media