A former Husker women’s basketball player is suing the Nebraska Board of Regents, head coach Amy Williams, athletic director Trev Alberts, and former assistant coach Chuck Love over sexual misconduct by Love.
Ashley Scoggin filed a civil lawsuit in federal court describing how Love allegedly took a special interest in her, how the relationship turned sexual, and how Scoggin feared retaliation if she refused to engage in it.
Scoggin played 2 seasons for the Cornhuskers, but was dismissed on the same day Love was suspended with pay in February 2022. Love resigned 3 months later while Scoggin eventually transferred to UNLV, where she is still playing.
The lawsuit accuses Williams and Alberts of failing to take appropriate action when the sexual relationship became widely known. It asks for a jury trial in Lincoln and unspecified damages for the alleged violation of her civil rights.
Scoggin is represented by attorney Maren Chaloupka of Scottsbluff, who describes Love as a ”predatory” coach and says there’s “an enormous imbalance of power between the professional coach and student-athletes.”
Chaloupka also says top level Division 1 schools are well aware of the harm that comes from this kind of a predatory situation, and there’s a strong onus on the university and on the coaches to prevent this from happening and, heaven forbid it does happen, to address it correctly.”
Williams and Alberts are accused of not setting rules or policies prohibiting staff members from having sexual relationships with athletes and of not providing training to staff on the issue.
The lawsuit claims the lack of safeguards “was so reckless that misconduct involving sexual misconduct by coaches was inevitable.”
The university says it disagrees with the allegations and would defend itself. Williams, Alberts, and Love declined to comment.
According to the lawsuit:
Scoggin had an internship in the athletic department in the summer of 2021 and she expressed interest in becoming a coach someday. Love invited Scoggin to work at a small table in his office, and she accepted.
Love, who was married, asked Scoggin personal questions, including the type of alcohol she preferred, and Love began asking her to go out for drinks with him. Scoggin declined several invitations but eventually accepted one. A few days later, they met late at night in a Costco parking lot, where Love kissed her and asked, “Have you ever done anything with a coach before?”
The interaction left Scoggin feeling “confused and trapped” because “it was now undeniable that Love wanted a sexual relationship.” Once the relationship turned sexual, Love expected Scoggin to be “available and willing” whenever he wanted to have sex and included summoning her to his hotel room when the team traveled for away games.
On the night before a game at Penn State in February 2022, team members and practice players created a ruse to confirm and videotape Scoggin’s presence in Love’s hotel room. A male practice player falsely represented himself to the desk clerk as Love to obtain a duplicate room key. Two team members confronted Scoggin in Love’s room. They reported their findings and showed the video to Williams.
“Williams cast Ashley in the role of a seducer and a liar,” the lawsuit said. “She allowed the players to berate and accuse Ashley for hours. She did not redirect or counsel the players that what they had seen may be the result of an abuse of power by her associate head coach.”
Upon returning to Lincoln, Scoggin was not informed of her rights under Title IX and in a meeting with Williams and other members of the administration was told she was off the team, according to the complaint.
Scoggin’s dismissal and Love’s suspension were reported simultaneously by the media.
“NU, Williams and Alberts were motivated to avoid scandal and embarrassment to the Cornhuskers women’s basketball program instead of being motivated to protect its student-athlete, Ashley,” the lawsuit said.
“NU, Williams and Alberts allowed the speculation and perception to fester that Ashley was ‘equally to blame’ or otherwise had done something improper when they should have sent a clear message that it is always improper for a professional coach to pursue a sexual relationship with a student-athlete.”