Junior Year Box Set

“I’m glad you asked that, and I’m sure everyone wants to know the status of the case. The state’s attorney and police found no evidence to support what was leaked to the media. I want to thank Jeff and his newspaper for providing pictures that proved that the last time I was with the young woman she was perfectly fine. From that point on, until I was questioned by the police on Monday, I had witnesses that placed me at my farm, doing a photo shoot with Range Sports, or working with a church group. Every bit of what I just said was verified by the state’s attorney’s office in their recent press conference, where they announced to the press that no charges would be brought against me.

“Tomorrow I’ll meet with the young woman and her family, and we’ll try to resolve my responsibility regarding the pregnancy. If it is my child, I’ll do everything I can to support him or her. I take that obligation seriously.

“Now to answer your question regarding recruiting. The schools that know me were all very supportive. Others were on the fence, and then a handful had a no-tolerance policy concerning domestic abuse, even when it’s not verified and even when no charges have been brought. I had planned to visit one of those schools this weekend, but they wouldn’t take the chance that the allegations might be true,” I said.

“Which school were you going to visit?” Jeff asked.

“I don’t think it would be right to point fingers. I feel that at least you should be given the presumption of innocence until proven guilty.”

Of course, all they would have to do was go onto one of my social media accounts and see my planned visits.

“But isn’t it true that over 95 percent of rape charges are found to be true? Shouldn’t a university protect itself?” Jeff asked.

I loved Jeff. He kept lobbing me softballs that I had been prepped to be able to answer.

“That sounds like one of those stats one of the women’s groups who protested would cite. From what I’ve read, that number is based on an anecdote of an anecdote, and may only be accurate for cases that go all the way through a trial and actually are decided by a jury. Other studies have concluded that anywhere between forty to fifty percent of initial rape allegations are found to be untrue. The two main reasons such false charges are leveled are either for revenge or for an alibi. The third most common reason appears to be financial.

“Not too long ago, Mark Sanchez had similar charges leveled against him, and it was found the woman in question told her mom he’d taken advantage of her. When all was said and done, he’d done everything in a textbook fashion—asking her several times if she was okay with what they were doing, if she wanted to stop, etc. Even then, the investigation was dropped only with the comment of ‘insufficient evidence’ as the finding. I want to thank our state’s attorney, Mr. Mason, for not letting me twist in the wind like that,” I said.

“So what reason do you think was behind your charges?” Jeff asked.

“Well, I know her dad isn’t happy with us. Another reason might be money.”

“Can you understand why you might get painted with the same brush so many athletes are in cases like this?”

I smiled.

“Yes and no. I agree there are many entitled jocks who act in a loathsome fashion. There’s a reason athletes are stereotyped; unfortunately many do act as if they’re God’s gift. What I don’t understand is why that should apply to me. If there were even a rumor I let things go to my head and thought I deserved to be treated as special, I’d have to answer to my mother, and none of you can scare me near as much as she can. If you don’t believe me, ask her,” I said, which caused Jim, Tracy, and Coach Hope all to laugh.

“As a father, I would not be worried about David forcing anyone to do anything,” Coach Hope said.

“You’d let him date your daughter?” Jeff asked.

Coach Hope leaned back for a second, obviously trying to put his thoughts into the right words. “My daughter thinks the world of David. They’re very close friends. She’s never said anything that makes me believe David isn’t one of the nicest boys she knows, and I have to agree with her.

“But even though I think the world of David, I would not want him to date my daughter precisely because of media stuff like this. David’s not average, even for a top athlete. He’s also a model and actor. I think my daughter deserves to have a normal childhood and not be hounded by the likes of you,” Coach Hope said, and then changed the subject. “Now, I think we’ve wasted enough time on the events from this week. Let’s focus on football.”

The discussion turned to football. One of the writers seemed to be more knowledgeable than was typical. He started asking technical questions that were more suited for something I would talk to Bud Mason about. Questions like on play xyz what was my secondary read. Coach Hope shut him down because this was information other schools would love to have. It was bad enough they got to watch our game films.