A running back at LSU is facing rape charges for sexually assaulting a “blacked out” woman in his campus apartment after she asked to use his bathroom, university police said.
Tae Provens, a freshman originally from Gurley, Alabama, was booked on a third-degree rape charge after the 3 a.m. Sunday incident at his apartment at Riverbend Hall, where the alleged victim and a friend visited the freshman football player to use his bathroom, according to an arrest report by LSU police obtained by the Times-Picayune.
Once inside the apartment, Provens directed the woman to a bathroom in his bedroom, where he followed her. The woman said her memory became hazy at that point, as she began to lose consciousness, but she recalled Provens following her into the bathroom and her shirt coming off. She then tried to hold onto her underwear as it was removed, according to the arrest report.
According to the report, Provens then went behind the woman and sexually assaulted her while she told him, “No, no, no,” before pausing and continuing the attack. The woman managed to escape the bathroom and get dressed before leaving Proven’s apartment, police said.
A witness who was not in the bedroom at the time later told university police that she saw the woman leave the room upset and that Provens admitted having sex with the woman when the witness confronted him. But Provens told the witness he stopped when the victim became upset, according to the arrest report.
LSU spokesman Ernie Ballard confirmed Provens’ arrest and said the freshman had entered the NCAA’s transfer portal on March 21. Provens had not participated in team activities since indicating his intention to transfer to another university, Ballard said.
“We take any and all allegations like these seriously, and currently, this is a law enforcement investigation,” Ballard said in a statement. “At LSU, we’re committed to ending sexual violence and maintaining a community of respect, and an alleged incident like this goes against everything we stand for within our community.”
The alleged victim, meanwhile, is being offered “every resource available” by university officials, Ballard said.
Provens, who was arrested Wednesday, has been released from the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison after posting $15,000 bond, jail records show. He did not immediately return a message seeking comment early Thursday. It’s unclear if he’s hired an attorney.
Provens had four carries for 13 yards in 2018, according to team statistics. He announced his intention to leave LSU in a tweet on March 21, just three days before the alleged attack.
“LSU will always have a special place in my heart,” Provens wrote. “I have decided to separate myself from LSU and pursue my dreams somewhere else! I have nothing but love and respect for LSU and wish them nothing but the best in the near future.”