Boise State says Ukwuachu's dismissal had nothing to do with acts of violence

Boise State issued a statement on Tuesday saying it knew nothing about former player Sam Ukwuachu being violent towards women. Ukwuachu, who had transferred to Baylor in 2013 but did not play for the Bears, was convicted last week of sexually assaulting a female Baylor soccer player in October 2013 and was sentenced to 180 days in jail with 10 years of probation.

"The incidents and factors that contributed to Sam Ukwuachu's dismissal from the Boise State football team had nothing to do with accusations of any sexual assaults or with accusations that he physically assaulted any women," the statement read. "However, federal laws protecting privacy prohibit Boise State from releasing information about ​what did result in his dismissal from the Boise State University football team."

Boise State also noted that it did not receive any reports of Ukwuachu being abusive to his former girlfriend while at Boise State.

"In widely reported testimony from the Aug. 20 Texas trial, Ukwuachu's former girlfriend stated Ukwuachu hit and choked her while they were students at Boise State. This information about their relationship was not reported to Boise State when the two were students here. While neither student is currently enrolled at Boise State, the University has requested a transcript of the testimony and will begin a Title IX inquiry immediately based on this testimony about a potential physically abusive relationship between the two former students. That inquiry, like all such inquiries, will not be subject to public records requests for privacy reasons."

Baylor coach Art Briles said in an earlier statement that he was unaware of any abusive behavior from Ukwuachu, although former Boise State coach Chris Peterson said he "thoroughly apprised" Briles of "the circumstances surrounding Sam's disciplinary record and dismissal."

"I was contacted by Coach Petersen at Boise State in spring 2013 and he told me he had a player from Texas who needed to get closer to home and that he thought our program would be a good spot for him," Briles said in the statement. "I know and respect Coach Petersen and he would never recommend a student-athlete to Baylor that he didn't believe in. In our discussion, he did not disclose that there had been violence toward women, but he did tell me of a rocky relationship with his girlfriend which contributed to his depression. The only disciplinary action I was aware of were team-related issues, insubordination of coaches and missing practice."

A Sports Illustrated report on Tuesday says the university of Florida stopped recruiting Ukwuachu after it learned from Boise State the extent of the player's domestic violence issues.

Here is Boise State's statement in full:

The incidents and factors that contributed to Sam Ukwuachu’s dismissal from the Boise State football team had nothing to do with accusations of any sexual assaults or with accusations that he physically assaulted any women. However, federal laws protecting privacy prohibit Boise State from releasing information about ​what did result in his dismissal from the Boise State University football team.

Boise State University never received any reports nor had any knowledge of Sam Ukwuachu being involved in any accusations of sexual assault before or during his time at Boise State.

In widely reported testimony from the Aug. 20 Texas trial, Ukwuachu’s former girlfriend stated Ukwuachu hit and choked her while they were students at Boise State. This information about their relationship was not reported to Boise State when the two were students here. While neither student is currently enrolled at Boise State, the University has requested a transcript of the testimony and will begin a Title IX inquiry immediately based on this testimony about a potential physically abusive relationship between the two former students. That inquiry, like all such inquiries, will not be subject to public records requests for privacy reasons.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) is a federal law restricting the ability of an institution of higher education to release student information without their specific written permission. Nevertheless, an exception exists for the release of information where a validly issued subpoena is produced. University officials coordinated with McLennan County prosecuting attorneys, releasing records to them pursuant to a valid subpoena, as required by FERPA. Those records, despite having been released pursuant to subpoena, remain protected, and FERPA prohibits Boise State from releasing even those that have become part of the public record in the trial. In addition to FERPA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act restricts Boise State from releasing certain information about students as well.