AUSTIN, Texas –
The former athletic director at Baylor University alleges that regents schemed to make Black football players scapegoats for a decades-long problem of sexual assault at the nation’s largest Baptist school, and that he resigned rather than be part of a massive cover-up.
Ian McCaw said he was “disgusted” by the racism and the “phony” investigation document that Baylor issued in 2016 that leveled findings against the football program, according to excerpts from his June 19 deposition. He also testified that he ultimately resigned because he “did not want to be part of some Enron cover-up scheme.”
The excerpts appear in documents filed Wednesday by attorneys representing 10 women who are suing Baylor over how it handled their allegations of sexual assault. McCaw, who is White, was subpoenaed to testify as part of the lawsuit.
Baylor was engulfed in a sexual assault scandal surrounding its football team in 2016, ultimately resulting in the firing of then-football coach Art Briles and the demotion of the university’s president was also disciplined by the school and put on probation. He resigned a few days later.
Baylor has already settled several other lawsuits from women who said their reports of sexual assault were mishandled or ignored.
McCaw’s full deposition from the pending lawsuit remains under seal. The excerpts of his testimony were included in a request to a federal judge to force Baylor to produce documents that the school has withheld, citing student privacy.
