A federal lawsuit filed Wednesday in Detroit has put Michigan hockey’s long-touted tradition under a harsh spotlight, with 16 former players accusing the university and its Board of Regents of allowing ritualized sexual hazing to go on for years.
The complaint, which spans 74 pages and was detailed by ESPN, says coaches and staff knew about and tolerated the conduct from 1984 through 2001. The allegations include forced nudity, genital shaving and other degrading acts aimed at freshmen as part of team initiation. Some of the plaintiffs also say they were sexually assaulted with razor handles and subjected to additional physical abuse involving their genitals.
The lawsuit says former coach Red Berenson directed players to hide the hazing by shaving only “below the neck,” so nothing would be visible once they got dressed. Berenson, who coached the Wolverines for 33 years, won two national championships and ranks among the winningest coaches in NCAA history. He is now 86.
The case also names former assistant and later head coach Mel Pearson. According to the complaint, he told at least one player to “keep your head down” and “just get through it.”
Plaintiffs say they stayed silent because they feared retaliation, including losing playing time and hurting their future hockey chances. One player says his playing time was cut after he brought concerns to the university’s athletic director.
Berenson told MLive that some “mishaps” may have happened among seniors, but he denied that coaches encouraged or directed any sexualized abuse. “When they say sexual, I’m guessing they’re stretching this,” he told the outlet.
Pearson has not publicly responded to the allegations. The university has not yet filed a formal response.
The lawsuit comes during another painful stretch for Michigan athletics, after the university reached a $490 million settlement in 2022 over decades of abuse by former sports physician Robert Anderson.
The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified financial damages and want Michigan to require sexualized-hazing prevention training across its athletic programs. Attorney Michael Pitt said the university had known about the possibility of litigation for more than a year without reaching a resolution.
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