Headed to the NCAA Tournament as the Ivy League champions, the Yale Bulldogs will be without their team captain. Jack Montague was expelled for sexual misconduct.
Yale University has not confirmed the reason for Montague's expulsion, just that he would not return to the team. Yale's basketball team has faced criticism for publicly showing support for Montague, which the team has since apologized for.
Montague's alleged victim reported the crime in November, months after the incident took place, and Yale ruled on Feb. 10 he would be expelled. The school also denied Montague's appeal. Montague was never arrested and the complainant did not file a report with Yale's police department.
"The governing principle is that all student educational matters, including disciplinary matters, are a private educational concern between the student and Yale; the university therefore does not disclose the details of a student's status," a Yale spokesman wrote in a statement.
Though Yale would not confirm the reason for Montague's expulsion, his father called the ruling "ridiculous."
"We have strict orders from our lawyers," Jim Montague said. "Soon enough, I'd love to tell the other side of the story. It's ridiculous, why he's expelled. It's probably going to set some sort of precedent. We're trying to do things the gentleman's way, so we're keeping things close-knit. But you guys will get a story."
Yale basketball players wore t-shirts with the number four and the name "Gucci," Montague's nickname, over their jerseys before games to show support for their captain. Several students staged demonstrations on Yale's New Haven campus, including putting up posters urging the team to "stop supporting a rapist."
The team apologized, but tried to clarify their intended message.
"Our recent actions to show our support for one of our former teammates were not intended to suggest otherwise, but we understand that to many students they did," the team said in a statement. "We apologize for the hurt we have caused, and we look forward to learning and growing from these recent incidents. As student representatives of Yale, we hope to use our positions on and off the court in a way that can make everyone proud."
