Tennessee-Title IX Lawsuit-Manning Football

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is mentioned in a lawsuit a group of women filed against the University of Tennessee last week in which they said the school violated Title IX regulations in the way it has handled reports of sexual assaults by student-athletes.

(Julio Cortez, Associated Press file photo)

A lawsuit accusing the University of Tennessee of improperly handling accusations of sexual assault by student-athletes mentions a 1996 incident involving Peyton Manning, according to news reports.

The Associated Press reports the lawsuit filed by six women focuses on five incidents from 2013 to 2015. However, it makes references to other cases dating from 1995, including one involving Manning and a trainer for the Tennessee football team.

The federal lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Nashville, ESPN reports. It accuses Tennessee of violating Title IX regulations in regard to sexual assaults, claiming women who made complaints had to endure additional harassment. It also says the school interfered with the disciplinary process to favor male athletes.

In February 1996, trainer Jamie Ann Naughright said she was treating the foot of Manning, who was a quarterback at the school from 1994-97. Naughright said Manning, who was sitting on a table, forced his nude private area onto her face and head, according to court documents from 2003 obtained by the New York Daily News.

Manning denied he had targeted Naughright and said it was a prank directed at another athlete.

Police did not investigate the incident.

Naughright reached a settlement in 1997, but sued Manning 2002 after he wrote about the incident in a book. That case was settled in 2003, the AP reports.

According to ESPN, several student-athletes at Tennessee have been accused of sexual assault during the past few years. The lawsuit names 10 players, including A.J. Johnson and Michael Williams, who were indicted in February 2015 on aggravated rape charges. Both will go on trial separately this summer.

A lawyer representing Tennessee, Bill Ramsey, said in a statement the university "acted lawfully and in good faith" in regard to the incidents cited in the lawsuit, ESPN reports.

Peyton Manning entered the NFL in 1998 and has been one of its biggest stars, winning Super Bowls with the Indianapolis Colts and this year with the Denver Broncos.