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A North Carolina judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by 31 former North Carolina State male athletes who alleged sexual abuse by the athletic program’s former director of sports medicine.
The lawsuit was filed under the guise of treatment and harassment against Robert M. Murphy Jr., as well as North Carolina State athletic officials who are tied to the surveillance rules.
However, Wake County Superior Court Judge Bryan Collins denied the requests, citing procedural reasons.
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North Carolina State Wolfpack club seats are prepared for fans during the college basketball game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and North Carolina State at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina on January 8, 2019. (Michael Berg/Sportswire Icon)
That lawsuit, which was filed in February in state court, is a matter that began in 2022 when a single athlete filed his own federal lawsuit. It was alleged that Murphy had years of misconduct, including inappropriate genital touching during massages and intrusive observation during urine collections for drug testing.
Ultimately, Collins granted a motion by Murphy’s lawyers to dismiss the case, finding that the statute of limitations had expired on claims dating back to 2013.
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Additionally, Collins dismissed complaints against athletic officials, including former athletic director Debbie Yow and current athletic director Boo Corrigan, on competency grounds.
Kery Sutton, who has represented the former NC State athletes since the original case, said he plans to appeal the judge’s decision.
“This termination has nothing to do with Mr. Murphy’s sexual abuse of these 31 former student-athletes,” Sutton said in a statement. “This decision was made solely based on legal procedural matters. We plan to appeal this outcome, and in the coming days we will add new complaints against NCSU for the men who have recently come forward.”
The NC State Wolfpack logo appears on a pair of shorts during a Southwest Maui Invitational second round game against the Boise State Broncos at the Lahaina Center in Lahaina, Hawaii on November 25, 2025. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
“The truth is that nothing happened except one man’s career being ruined for money,” Jared Hammett, Murphy’s attorney, said in a statement. “As an attorney, I’m just happy that we were able to help another person who needed support and needed this defense.”
Hammett’s statement also described Murphy as “someone who has dedicated his life to working with athletes.”
Only two of the athletes involved in the lawsuit filed a lawsuit without using “John Doe” as the plaintiff’s name to protect anonymity. One of them was Benjamin Locke, a Wolfpack men’s soccer player who filed the initial complaint in August 2022.
The North Carolina State Wolfpack logo is displayed during the second half of the NC State game against the Miami Hurricanes at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina on January 15, 2020. (Jaylynn Nash/Sportswire Icon)
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“NC State does not tolerate any form of sexual misconduct,” the school said in a statement. “The health and safety of our students and student-athletes is paramount to the university and our athletic programs.”
