COLUMBUS, Ohio — Michael Schcyk grew up a Michigan fan but said he came to Ohio State University to wrestle because of the coaching.
Now, he says those coaches betrayed him and his teammates by failing to expose team doctor Richard Strauss.
“It offends me to this day why coaches did not stand up for us,” Schyck said.
Schyck is among hundreds of Strauss victims who say they were sexually abused by Strauss during team physicals and other visits.
“I'm ashamed to be an Ohio State Buckeye right now,” he said.
Schyck is reacting to Wednesday’s ruling by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson who said there was no question that the victims "suffered unspeakable sexual abuse" at the hands of Strauss and that coaches and other school officials knew about it and did not stop him.
But Judge Watson said the cases could not move forward because the statute of limitations of two years expired.
Schyck doesn’t see it that way.
“There were people who knew about it, covered it up, for 20 years and continue to enable a doctor to sexually abuse all of his athletes so that's when we found out there was a crime so that's when the clock should start ticking,” he said.
His attorney, Stephen Estey agrees and wonders if the judge’s ruling will have a chilling effect on future victims.
"It kind of discourages people from coming forward right, but we are not done yet. We are not going to stop fighting for these men,” Estey said.
Unlike other plaintiffs who had settled with Ohio State in May for nearly $47 million, Schyck and others refused to settle claiming what the university offered in terms of a settlement was not enough for the harm that was caused
“That settlement was a slap in the face,” Estey said.
Now that his clients have lost their first attempt at justice, they plan to appeal the judge’s ruling to the 6th circuit court of appeals and say they plan to take the case to U.S. Supreme Court if needed.