Current:Home > MyOle Miss, Kiffin seek dismissal of lawsuit filed by Rebels football player-LoTradeCoin
Ole Miss, Kiffin seek dismissal of lawsuit filed by Rebels football player
View Date:2024-12-24 00:50:47
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi football coach Lane Kiffin and the school have filed a motion seeking dismissal of a lawsuit filed by a Rebels player alleging racial and sexual discrimination and negligence.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Oxford contends that DeSanto Rollins, a defensive tackle from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was kicked off the team during a mental health crisis. The school maintained in Wednesday’s filing seeking dismissal that Rollins remains on the team and on scholarship.
He is still listed on the roster but has not played this season for the 10th-ranked Rebels, who visit No. 1 Georgia on Saturday.
Rollins, who is Black, is seeking $10 million in compensatory damages and $30 million in punitive damages. He claims he was not supported through his depression the way white and female athletes have been at Ole Miss.
Rollins’ playing career has been hampered by injuries, including a concussion and Achilles tendon injury in the spring and summer of 2022, that left him severely depressed, the lawsuit said.
Attorneys for the school and Kiffin contend that the coach “is not liable for intentional infliction of emotional distress.” They also challenged the validity of Rollins’ claims regarding equal protection, discrimination and negligence and said the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi “should decline supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiff’s state law claims.”
Carroll Rhodes, an attorney representing Rollins, said Thursday that “what they filed was not accurate.”
“We’ll be filing a response in due course,” said Rhodes, who is based in Hazlehurst, Mississippi.
Kiffin and Ole Miss are represented by attorneys from Mayo Mallette in Oxford and Foreman Watkins & Krutz based out of Jackson, Mississippi.
The lawsuit says Rollins recorded a meeting with Kiffin on March 21 when the coach said, “Go, you’re off the team. You’re done. See ya.”
While Rollins is still listed on the roster, both he and defensive end Isaac Ukwu, a transfer from James Madison who has played in every game, are listed as No. 99.
“Lane Kiffin had a malevolently ingenious way of kicking DeSanto Rollins off the team when he thought no one was listening,” Rhodes said.
The Associated Press has reached out to attorneys for Kiffin and Ole Miss seeking comment.
___ Get alerts on the latest AP Top 25 poll throughout the season. Sign up here ___ AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
veryGood! (59749)
Related
- Mean Girls’ Lacey Chabert Details “Full Circle” Reunion With Lindsay Lohan and Amanda Seyfried
- NATO’s Rutte calls for more Western support for Ukraine, warns of Russian alliances
- Harriet Tubman posthumously honored as general in Veterans Day ceremony: 'Long overdue'
- Britney Spears Reunites With Son Jayden Federline After His Move to Hawaii
- Shaun White Reveals How He and Fiancée Nina Dobrev Overcome Struggles in Their Relationship
- Wicked's Ethan Slater Shares How Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo Set the Tone on Set
- Texas’ 90,000 DACA recipients can sign up for Affordable Care Act coverage — for now
- Celtics' Jaylen Brown calls Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo a 'child' over fake handshake
- Only 8 monkeys remain free after more than a week outside a South Carolina compound
- Apologetic rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine gets 45 days in prison for probation violations
Ranking
- Women’s baseball players could soon have a league of their own again
- Gerry Faust, former Notre Dame football coach, dies at 89
- Early Week 11 fantasy football rankings: 30 risers and fallers
- Waymo’s robotaxis now open to anyone who wants a driverless ride in Los Angeles
- DWTS' Sasha Farber Claps Back at Diss From Jenn Tran's Ex Devin Strader
- Gavin Rossdale Makes Rare Public Appearance With Girlfriend Xhoana Xheneti
- Minnesota county to pay $3.4M to end lawsuit over detainee’s death
- Wall Street makes wagers on the likely winners and losers in a second Trump term
Recommendation
-
Chicago Bears will ruin Caleb Williams if they're not careful | Opinion
-
My Little Pony finally hits the Toy Hall of Fame, alongside Phase 10 and Transformers
-
Pentagon secrets leaker Jack Teixeira set to be sentenced, could get up to 17 years in prison
-
Britney Spears Reunites With Son Jayden Federline After His Move to Hawaii
-
Mississippi Valley State football player Ryan Quinney dies in car accident
-
Pitchfork Music Festival to find new home after ending 19-year run in Chicago
-
All the Ways Megan Fox Hinted at Her Pregnancy With Machine Gun Kelly
-
Klay Thompson returns to Golden State in NBA Cup game. How to watch