Records: NC State officials made aware of trainer allegations years ago

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  Xuan ThaiNov 12, 2026, 12:41 PM ET

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  Xuan Thai is a senior writer and producer in ESPN's investigative and enterprise unit. She was previously deputy bureau chief of the south region for NBC News.

Top North Carolina State sports officials, including the athletic director, knew of allegations of inappropriate physical contact with male athletes against sports medicine director Robert M. Murphy Jr. for several years before anyone raised concerns with the school's Title IX office, according to documents obtained by ESPN.

The former NC State Title IX deputy coordinator told investigators she recalled "having a what-the-f--- moment" when she learned of a 2019 memo, which contained concerns raised by athletic department staff about Murphy's behavior. The memo had been buried in a folder for three years while he remained on the job.

> The allegations included that Murphy touched male athletes' genitals inappropriately during treatments, observed male athletes in the locker room and shower, engaged in behavior one coach described as "grooming" and had boundary-crossing relationships with student-athletes.

> Some of the allegations were included in a 32-count criminal indictment filed in September against Murphy for alleged sexual abuse of 14 athletes. Murphy, through his attorneys, has denied the charges.

> NC State said in a statement, "Sexual misconduct of any kind is unacceptable...As soon as the allegations were reported to NC State University Police and the Title IX office in 2022, the university took prompt action...We can state clearly that Robert Murphy is no longer employed at NC State, and has not worked at NC State since the university learned of the allegations and took action. As this is an ongoing legal matter, we cannot comment further at this time."

> Murphy's attorneys did not respond to requests for comment, but in a Sept. 24 statement, they said: "We, as always, believe that when people hear the actual facts of what occurred, Mr. Murphy will be cleared and the truth will be paramount."