As a senior at Coppell High School (Texas) in 2015, Charles West was accused of raping two women at knifepoint in separate incidents, according to Dallas News.
He was given probation and pleaded guilty to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after both women “had a hard time testifying in front of her attacker.”
West had been committed to BYU but never enrolled. He attended Garden City Community College instead.
In January, he spoke to Southern Mississippi about joining the Golden Eagles, according to SBNation and The Athletic.
The coaching staff did not notify the school about his background, both outlets reported.
According to SBNation, West signed grant-in-aid papers and was told by football staff to move to campus.
He was on campus in January looking at housing and expected to begin classes on Jan. 24, the Athletic reported.
Only when his academic eligibility came to question did staff find the Dallas News article about the rape allegations and probation. According to the Athletic, West was then denied admission.
Southern Miss was his only offer, according to 247Sports. West rushed for 1,492 yards and nine touchdowns in 10 games in 2018.
The Athletic reported that West isn’t the only person with connections to sexual assault that Southern Miss has spoken to recently without notifying university staff beforehand.
The outlet said Jay Hopson and staff recently interviewed Art Briles, the former Baylor head coach who oversaw the team in which 31 different players were accused of at least 52 sexual assaults over a five-year period, according to a 2017 lawsuit.