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Jake Trotter, ESPN Senior Writer
MADISON, Wis. — Penn State coach James Franklin apologized for walking away from the microphone Wednesday when asked about two former players who were accused by police of raping a 17-year-old girl in their apartment July 7.
“I didn’t do a great job of handling Wednesday,” Franklin said Saturday night following Penn State’s 28-13 victory over Wisconsin. “Difficult, difficult situation and I got to own that I did not do a good job of that. … I did not do a good job of handling that situation and representing this program the right way.”
Former Nittany Lions defensive end Jameial Lyons, 19, is charged with felony rape, aggravated assault without consent, voluntary deviate sexual intercourse and misdemeanor indecent assault without consent and invasion of privacy without consent. Former Penn State linebacker Kaveion Keys, 19, is charged with felony rape, aggravated assault without consent and sexual assault and misdemeanor indecent assault without consent.
Penn State suspended Lyons and Keys from the football team in August.
“We are aware of the serious charges against Mr. Keys and Mr. Lyons, who are no longer enrolled at the University,” a school spokesperson said in a statement last week. “The safety of our community is our top priority, and Penn State takes any report of sexual assault or misconduct very seriously and investigates any and all reports.”
After Wednesday’s practice, a reporter started to ask Franklin about the criminal case. Franklin walked away from the microphone, and a university spokesperson read a prepared statement: “Regarding the two former Penn State football players, we released a statement yesterday and our program and athletics department will have no further comment.”
When another reporter attempted to ask Franklin about dismissing the players, he walked away again.
Franklin said Saturday that he understood why the questions needed to be asked.
“I respect that,” he said. “The reality is there’s not a whole lot more I can say other than that [university’s] statement. It’s an ongoing legal situation and it’s challenging. It’s challenging on everybody. … I didn’t do a good job there. I’m trying to get better like everybody else in a difficult situation. … I apologize.”
ESPN Senior Writer Mark Schlabach contributed to this report.