Rebecca Cook/Reuters
Michigan State University maintained ties to a volleyball coach for years after he was accused in 1995 of raping six underage girls he trained in the 1980s, the Associated Press reports. Letters obtained by the AP show the university, already under fire for the Larry Nassar abuse scandal, has been facing calls to end its relationship with coach Rick Butler. Butler reportedly continues to run training facilities outside Chicago that yield top volleyball recruits, including for Michigan State University. The university also held exhibition games at his facilities at least until 2014, according to the report. Butler’s accusers have said he threatened to sabotage their college ambitions if they didn’t give in to his advances, and at least one of his accusers claimed he sexually abused her hundreds of times over the span of two years. He has never been charged and has denied the accusations. In a statement to the AP on Monday, the university said Butler is currently “not affiliated with MSU in any way.”