At a recent University of Michigan hockey game, former players from the school's 1996 national championship team were honored, joining fans in celebrating a storied era of Wolverine ice hockey under longtime coach Red Berenson. Berenson, who retired in 2017 after a 33-year tenure with 848 victories, stood alongside his former assistant Mel Pearson as the crowd applauded the team’s past achievements.
Yet amid the celebration, a profoundly different story has emerged from some former players who were part of the program between 1984 and 2001. Sixteen men filed a lawsuit in September against the university, alleging they endured a pervasive culture of hazing that they describe as sexualized abuse carried out with the knowledge and, they claim, facilitation of the coaching staff. These players, all now in their 40s and 50s, say the abusive practices have had long-lasting effects on their mental and physical health.
The allegations include graphic rituals involving forced alcohol consumption alongside live goldfish, genital shaving with disposable razors and blowtorches, and some instances of forcible penetration. According to the lawsuit and interviews with one of the former players, those who resisted the hazing were branded as unworthy of the program and ostracized as poor teammates. The former player recounted that coaches appeared to condone the conduct, even observing and laughing the day after these events.
Berenson and the university have denied the claims. The university called the lawsuit misleading, and Berenson has maintained that the coaches never promoted or encouraged hazing, suggesting that such actions were primarily orchestrated by senior players. In previous remarks, Berenson acknowledged that team captains sometimes “got carried away” and noted that the program ceased freshman hazing ceremonies in 2012. In a September statement, he described the public airing of these accusations as “embarrassing” and indicated that any concerns should have been addressed privately among coaching leadership and team captains.
One plaintiff, who agreed to speak under anonymity to protect his family’s privacy, described a recruitment visit filled with promise that quickly unraveled into a damaging initiation into the team’s hazing culture. After reporting his experiences to Berenson and his staff, the player said he was rebuffed by Berenson, who reportedly told him to “do it or you’re out.” The player said his opportunities and playing time dwindled after voicing objections, leading to his departure from the team and end of a potential professional career. In the years that followed, he faced struggles with substance abuse and legal issues, conditions he attributes in part to the trauma endured while in the program.
The lawsuit seeks acknowledgment and accountability rather than financial compensation, with plaintiffs hoping to prevent similar harm to current and future athletes. The university highlighted its early adoption of antihazing policies in 1982, predating Berenson’s coaching years, and noted ongoing efforts to address hazing on campus. Nonetheless, recent incidents across college campuses, including fraternities at Michigan, demonstrate the persistence of hazardous hazing practices despite institutional policies.
As legal proceedings unfold, the former players' claims raise complex questions about the responsibilities of collegiate athletic programs in preventing abuse and supporting vulnerable student-athletes. For many of those involved, the case is a call for recognition and redress for harms long concealed behind the image of athletic success.