Report: Peyton Manning cited in Tennessee sexual assault lawsuit

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning is among the athletes named in a lawsuit filed by a group of former female students alleging that the University of Tennessee has long condoned a "hostile sexual environment," Anita Wadhwani and Nate Rau of the Tennessean report.

The lawsuit, which was filed last week by six women identified only as "Jane Does," cites a 1996 incident in which Manning was accused of placing his naked genitals on the face of a female athletic trainer while she was examining him. Manning denied assaulting the trainer, claiming he was "mooning" a teammate.

The trainer, Dr. Jamie Naughright, later sued Manning for defamation after he described her as having a "vulgar mouth" in a book he wrote with his father, Archie.

The sexual assault allegation against Manning was first reported in 2003, but resurfaced Saturday in a New York Daily News column by Shaun King.

The UT lawsuit states that the school's athletics department has "deliberately created (and creates) a hostile discriminatory sexual environment for female students" and "acted with deliberate indifference in response to incidents of sexual assault," particularly those made against "major sports" athletes.

Former UT basketball player Yemi Makanjuola, former football players A.J. Johnson and Michael Williams, an unnamed current UT football player, and an unnamed non-student athlete are also accused of sexual assault in the lawsuit.