Report: 11 male athletes accuse former NC State athletic trainer of sexual misconduct

Eleven former NC State male athletes have gone public with their accusations of sexual misconduct allegedly committed by a former Wolfpack sports medicine director between 2012-22, according to a recent report by ESPN. The former NC State athletes are part of more than 30 participants in a civil lawsuit filed against former Wolfpack athletic trainer Robert Murphy and several university officials alleging they suffered in silence while Murphy continued to victimize male athletes seeking medical treatment.

The 11 former NC State athletes that spoke with ESPN on the condition of anonymity played for various Wolfpack sports teams between 2013-24, including nine currently engaged in the ongoing lawsuit. They allege Murphy engaged in misconduct that included inappropriate touching of their genitals during medical evaluations, often requiring the male athletes to be nearly nude in his presence, and subjecting them to “non-standard” drug testing procedures, according to ESPN.

One former NC State athlete explained Murphy’s reputation for touching the genitals of male athletes was so widely-known that it was referred to as the “Rob Murphy special,” according to ESPN.

“If somebody was gonna go see him for no matter what it was — back pain, arm pain, head pain, glute pain,” a plaintiff known as “John Doe 9” told ESPN, “the joke was that whatever it was, he was going to find a way to touch your genitals.”

Another former NC State athlete, identified in the lawsuit as “John Doe 1,” told ESPN he went to Murphy complaining about back pain only to have the athletic trainer put both hands down the athlete’s shorts with “one (hand) is on my penis and the other is basically on my anus.”

NC State first launched its Title IX investigation in January 2022 after former Wolfpack men’s soccer player Ben Locke filed a report with the school’s police department, according to documents obtained by ESPN. Locke is among just two named complainants in the civil lawsuit against Murphy and eight others that served as university officials when the alleged abuse occurred.

“The health and safety of students and student-athletes is paramount to NC State Athletics and the university,” NC State wrote in a statement to both ESPN and USA Today. “Sexual misconduct of any kind is unacceptable, prohibited by NC State’s policies, and in direct opposition to the mission, culture and standards of the university. As this is a pending legal matter, responses to this legal action will be made through the appropriate legal channels and the university cannot comment further at this time.”

NC State placed Murphy on administrative leave after launching its investigation and formally issued a letter of termination in March 2022, per documents reviewed by ESPN. Murphy later resigned in June 2022. Murphy had been at NC State since late 2011 following previous stints at Mercer University and the Atlanta Falcons. Within a year of Murphy’s hiring, then-NC State men’s soccer coach Kevin Findley approached school administrators about the trainer’s inappropriate and “overly familiar” conduct with athletes, according to a North Carolina lawsuit reviewed by ESPN. Findley went so far as to accuse Murphy of “grooming” several male soccer players, according to the complaint.

The ongoing civil lawsuit claimed NC State officials were warned of Murphy’s inappropriate conduct in 2015, 2016 and 2016, in addition to Findley’s concerns in 2012.

While neither Murphy or his lawyer have responded to requests for comment, a March court filing said the defendant acted “within the scope of his profession” and the civil claims against him have far exceeded North Carolina’s statute of limitations, according to ESPN.