Jeffery Epstein’s Ties to Ohio State Football

Jeffrey Epstein— the notorious pedophile— has been linked to NCAA athletics. The Ohio State University recently launched an investigation into his funding role in the football team’s facilities. Meanwhile, former Ohio State wrestlers allege that a team physician sexually assaulted them. While advocating for an independent investigation, the wrestlers recently wrote a public letter in support of Maria Farmer, who claims that Epstein assaulted her in 1996 at a property owned by two of Ohio State’s largest benefactors, Abigail and Leslie Wexner. See : https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-ohio-state-wrestlers-support-jeffrey-epstein-accuser-n1097031.

 The Wexners and Epstein had a long and deep financial relationship that includes the Wexner gift to the Ohio State football complex.

Ohio State, in a little-noticed press release over the summer, said (https://news.osu.edu/epstein-gifts/):

“In light of recent news surrounding Jeffrey Epstein, Ohio State initiated a review of gifts and donations. Preliminary findings show that the university has received one gift from Epstein and one gift from an affiliated foundation. In 1990, Epstein donated $1,000 to the Wexner Center for the Arts Membership Fund.

In partial fulfillment of a $5 million pledge made in 2005 to support the Woody Hayes Athletics Center, the COUQ Foundation, which is reported to be Epstein’s private foundation, anonymously donated $2.5 million to the university in May 2007. The Leslie H. Wexner Charitable Fund made an additional $2.5 million gift in 2007. Together, those gifts were applied to the naming of the Les Wexner Football Complex. (A copy of the gift agreement and associated records are available at this link.)

Epstein is a convicted sex offender whose crimes are reprehensible, and his association with these gifts to the university is concerning. Ohio State is conducting a complete review of the giving history to the university by Epstein and known associated entities and will take additional action as appropriate.”

As billions of dollars pour annually into the NCAA, universities have nurtured a culture of athletic-program elitism that turns complaint systems designed to address abuse and harassment of athletes into cover-up systems. 
Penn State ignored complaints that a coach was sexually assaulting children in its football facilities. Michigan State covered up complaints by more than 200 female gymnasts that a team physician sexually assaulted them.

They are far from alone. Scandals involving sexual abuse, racial and sexual harassment, and medical mistreatment, on a smaller scale, have occurred in numerous NCAA athletic programs.

These schools have complaint systems. At least with the scandal cases, they become cover-up systems.

If you watch the Big Ten Championship game today, consider the fact that the Ohio State team practiced in a facility likely funded by a pedophile who leveraged the status and power of OSU heavy-weight donors to achieve cultural immunity from the complaints made by powerless teenage victims.