On Monday morning, WBIR and Jimmy Hyams reported that senior linebacker AJ Johnson and a teammate have been named in a sexual assault investigation report.
WBIR says no charges have been filed, but they do refer to Johnson as a suspect.
From WBIR:
"A source has told WBIR 10News that Tennessee linebacker A.J. Johnson is one of two suspects named in a rape and sexual assault case."
Hyams reported the other suspect is also a Tennessee football player.
2 UT football players are involved in alleged rape Sunday at 2:57 am. It followed a party at apartment of a UT FB player, UT spokesman said
— Jimmy Hyams (@JimmyHyams) November 17, 2014
Butch Jones briefly addressed the situation on Monday during his weekly press conference, saying Tennessee will act in a very “decisive” manner after gathering all relevant information. He did add that players under police investigation will not be allowed to practice.
The fact that Johnson (and any others being investigated) won’t be allowed to practice means he almost certainly won’t play against Missouri, unless he is cleared or the investigation is wrapped up with no charges filed.
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Jones showed with the Treyvon Paulk and Marlin Lane situations that he takes allegations like these very seriously. Lane was never charged with anything, but still had to win back his spot on the team, by building trust with his teammates and players.
I don’t think Johnson’s status as a team captain will change the way Jones approaches this situation. He will (and absolutely should) be treated the same as any other player would be when these type of allegations surface.
This obviously isn’t the kind of news the Vols were hoping to deal with on Monday. Tennessee needs to make sure they gather the correct facts and make a swift and firm (and right) decision. It’s still very early in the process and I urge folks not to jump to any conclusions (on either side of things). These types of allegations are a very serious matter and shouldn’t be taken lightly.
Update
Tennessee announced on Monday afternoon that Johnson and Michael Williams (the other player that has since been named in investigation) have been suspended from all team related activities.