Marcellus Wiley (Photo by John Rieger/Imagn Images)
Two additional women have come forward with lawsuits accusing former NFL player Marcellus Wiley of rape during his time at Columbia University.

The lawsuits allege that Wiley assaulted both women in his dorm room in 1994 while he was a member of the school’s football team. These accusations add to previous claims made against him.

Who Is Marcellus Wiley?

Marcellus Wiley (Photo by Howard Smith)
Marcellus Vernon Wiley Sr. (born November 30, 1974) is a former professional football player and current sportscaster.

During his time at Saint Monica Catholic High School in Santa Monica, California, Wiley excelled in both football and track and field. He earned All-Conference honors in football and was a teammate of Adrian Klemm. Academically, he was the school’s valedictorian and a National Honor Society member. In 1988, he also won a national typewriting championship, achieving 82 words per minute.

At Columbia University, Wiley played multiple positions, including tailback, defensive end, and kick returner for the Lions. He began as a running back in his freshman and sophomore years before transitioning to defensive end in his senior season. That year, he recorded 63 tackles (17 for loss), 6.5 sacks, eight pass breakups, and three blocked field goals. As a team captain, he helped Columbia achieve an 8–2 record, marking the program’s best season since 1945. Wiley earned first-team All-American and All-Ivy League honors and graduated in 1997 with a degree in sociology.

Marcellus Wiley’s NFL Career

Marcellus Wiley (Photo by Brett Hansbauer)
The Buffalo Bills selected Wiley with the 52nd overall pick in the second round of the 1997 NFL Draft out of Columbia University.

Early in his professional career, Wiley played primarily as a situational pass rusher, tallying nine sacks over his first three seasons. In 2000, he underwent disc-repair surgery and missed the preseason. However, when Bruce Smith departed for the Washington Redskins, Wiley stepped in as the Bills’ starting defensive end and secured a spot on the opening-day roster.

In 2001, while playing for the San Diego Chargers, Wiley earned a selection to the AFC Pro Bowl team.

Marcellus Wiley Controversies

Two women have come forward with lawsuits accusing Marcellus Wiley of rape during his time at Columbia University in the 1990s.

The lawsuits, filed last week in New York, allege that Wiley attacked both women in separate incidents inside his dorm room in 1994. This isn’t the first time Wiley has faced such accusations, as he previously denied similar allegations made by another female student.
Marcellus Wiley and Annemarie Wiley (Photo by Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
One of the alleged victims, now residing in Texas, claims Wiley pressured her into sex after she accompanied him to his dorm on October 27, 1994. The alleged victim stated that she repeatedly told him no, but he dismissed her protests, saying she was “too upright and needed to relax.” She alleged he then forced himself on her, pinned her down, and whispered for her “to relax, enjoy it, stop crying, and stop fighting the feeling.“

She further claimed that when she reported the incident to a Columbia University administrator, she was discouraged from filing a criminal complaint. According to her, she was warned that she “would be known as the girl who destroyed a Black man’s NFL dream.”

A second accuser has also come forward, alleging that Wiley assaulted her in his dorm room. Both women are seeking unspecified damages in their lawsuits.

In addition to the recent lawsuits, Wiley was previously accused of rape in November 2023. The accuser, who is now an Ivy League professor and sociologist, claims Wiley raped her while they were students at Columbia University in 1994. However, Wiley strongly denied the allegations on social media.