Why was Washington’s running back Tybo Rogers arrested?
Washington has moved quickly to suspend the player, but when exactly did the university learn about the player’s alleged actions? Some things aren’t clear.
As details continue to emerge, questions have begun to arise regarding the university’s response to the player’s alleged actions and when exactly the institution learned about them. Time will tell.
Washington’s Tybo Rogers arrested on rape charges
According to reports, Washington running back Tybo Rogers was arrested on Friday by Seattle police and then released that same day after posting a $150,000 bond. The 18-year-old was then officially charged on Tuesday with one count of second-degree rape and one count of third-degree rape. Prosecutors in the case say that the incidents occurred between late October and November of last year.
“The University of Washington Intercollegiate Athletics Department is aware of the arrest of a football student-athlete by the Seattle Police Department,” the university said in a statement. “The student-athlete has been suspended from all team activities until further notice. The UW will continue to gather facts and cooperate with law enforcement, as requested.” It’s worth noting that one of the alleged two incidents was directly reported to the Washington Title IX office, after which Rogers was temporarily suspended in late November. Since that time both Huskies coach Kalen DeBoer and athletic director Troy Danneen have left the program.
Now, while it’s clear that Rogers’ suspension resulted in him not traveling with the team for the Pac-12 Championship Game, it is not clear whether the suspension was the result of the incidents due to the fact that the University failed to confirm that, something which doesn’t paint a positive picture when considering Rogers was definitely part of the Huskies’ run through the College Football Playoffs. As things stand, the suspension would have occurred under DeBoer, who left the program in January this year to take over for Nick Saban at Alabama. That brings us to Washington’s new coach, Jedd Fisch, who indicated that he and his staff were unaware of the allegation until Rogers was arrested last week. “As soon as we found out about any allegation, we suspended him immediately from the program,” Fisch said. As for Rogers himself, the freshman from Bakersfield, California played in 11 games for the Huskies during which he rushed for 184 yards on 44 carries, before notching six carries in the College Football Playoff after his suspension.