Ex-Ohio State football players to join sexual abuse suit
AP News • • sports
Key Points:
- Thirty former Ohio State football players, including ex-NFL athletes, have agreed to join a federal lawsuit against the university over decades-old sexual abuse by team doctor Richard Strauss.
- The men came forward after about eight years due to overcoming shame and fear, with only three—Al Washington, Ray Ellis, and Keith Ferguson—publicly revealing their identities.
- Ohio State has faced lawsuits since 2018 and settled with 317 survivors for over $61 million, while continuing mediation efforts and offering counseling and medical treatment.
- The abuse involved unlawful physical exams by Strauss, who worked at Ohio State from 1978 to 1998 and whose emeritus status was revoked by the university trustees in 2021.
- The public revelations were partly inspired by the 2025 documentary "Surviving Ohio State," which resurfaced painful memories for victims like Washington.
