In 2021, Sports Illustrated released an article on members of the men's soccer team engaging in sexual harassment and assault of students on campus. The allegations, which first came to surface in 2020 through social media posts, describe students who reportedly were taken to "the soccer house" and engaged in hazing. Multiple former and then-current soccer players on USF's men's team were named, and USF's Title IX office partnered with the law firm Hulst and Handler to assemble a 53-page report. In addition to finding that eleven individuals engaged in sexual assault, such eleven individuals also engaged in anti-LGBT rhetoric, though such behavior, contrary to the Sports Illustrated, was not found to be pervasive in the soccer program.[4][5]
Manny Padilla was among the players noted within the allegations and reports. Then the star player for the Dons, Padilla's actions were eventually learned of by the university. Administration at USF did find Padilla engaged in offending behavior, though he was given a deferred suspension, meaning he was permitted to graduate. Upon the allegations surfacing on social media, Padilla was suspended from New Mexico United, then the professional team which he played for, following a Change.org petition.[6][7]
