MADISON - A jury found former Wisconsin Badgers football player Quintez Cephus not guilty Friday of two counts of sexual assault.

The jury rendered its verdict in about 30 minutes after hearing Cephus testify that two women accusing him of assault had shown they consented to sex in his apartment by their actions.

After the verdict, Cephus said he was thankful for his friends and family who had been in court all week supporting him. He did not say whether he would try to return to the University of Wisconsin-Madison or football but said he has grown through the experience.

"I know it sounds crazy, but I think you grow through what you go through," Cephus said. "I’ve been able to grow a lot. I’m excited about the rest of my life going forward.”

Stephen Meyer, one of Cephus' attorneys, called the verdict proof of what they have insisted from the start: Cephus is an innocent person. He thanked the jury for its hard work and thoughtfulness.

"They searched for the truth and they found it," Meyer told reporters.

He said the allegations put Cephus' life on hold for the last 15 months. He would not comment on whether Cephus will take future legal actions.

"Just the nature of these allegations set an individual back," Meyer said of Cephus. "He’s a strong person. He’s going to come back."

Cephus, 21, of Macon, Georgia, was charged with one count of second-degree sexual assault of an intoxicated victim and one count of third-degree sexual assault. The jury found him not guilty of both counts late Friday.

The wide receiver was expelled from the university last semester and suspended from the football team last summer.

During nearly two hours of testimony, Cephus told the jury that once he had given the women the layout of his apartment, one of them immediately went into his room, took off her clothes by herself and got into his bed. He invited the other woman in, and she also got onto the bed.

"They went into my room on their own and they got naked on their own," Cephus testified.

Cephus added that both women asked if he had a condom, and he put one on before he had sex with them. He said the women never said "no" or told him to stop.

Cephus said both women had been flirting with him at the Double U bar earlier that night in April 2018. He said one of the women was "pretty much attached to me the whole time" and asked him to have a "sleepover."

He testified the woman asked him to give her a kiss and told him if he did not, she would not go back to his apartment.

Cephus said he does not like kissing in public. He said the woman was pulling his neck toward her and grabbing him. He said he sometimes had to knock her hand away and tell her to stop.

In the car on the way to his apartment, Cephus said the other woman was rubbing his neck as he was driving. He put his hand behind the seat, and she held it.

One of the women earlier in the week testified the only thing she remembered from Cephus' apartment was waking up to Cephus assaulting her and her friend on his bed.

The woman testified she was "very confused as to how we became naked" and said her friend was incapacitated when Cephus was having sex with her.

Assistant District Attorney William Brown contended that just because the women were interested in Cephus at the bar did not mean they consented to sex.

Cephus said he "never thought" that meant they consented, but they showed they wanted to have sex by voluntarily getting naked in his bed and making sexual demands.

Brown fired questions at Cephus, who remained calm and answered them clearly. At one point Dane County Judge William Hanrahan told Brown to slow down.

"You are trying to confuse me into all this," Cephus told Brown.

Brown pointed out that Cephus had lied to police in initial interviews soon after the incident.

Cephus admitted to falsely telling police he took a photo of one of the women half-naked on his floor the night of the incident. He said Friday he did this so his teammate Danny Davis, who took the picture, would not get in trouble.

Davis deleted the photo soon after it was taken when the woman told him to do so. He was suspended from the football team for two games last year for taking the photo.

At one point Brown asked Cephus if it was fair to say he had "millions of dollars riding on being found not guilty," indicating Cephus' prospect in a career in football.

The question drew gasps from the courtroom, which was packed all week with Cephus' friends and family members. Hanrahan told the jury to disregard Brown's comment.

When suggested by Brown that Cephus did not care about the women, Cephus said he drove them home and went to Sellery Residence Hall with Davis and the women's friend to make sure one of the women got home.

"I cared enough to get them home safe," he testified.

Robert Major, one of the jurors in the case, called the process "intense" but said the jurors were "conscientious people." He said the jurors were "very good note takers" and took time to examine all the evidence.

"They all really knew the significance of their decision," Major said. "Everyone was very moved by both attorneys. We really wanted to say to Quintez that we support you."