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Report: Title IX complaint filed against Florida men's basketball coach Todd Golden alleging sexual harassment

Todd Golden is in his third season as Florida men's basketball coach. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Florida men's basketball coach Todd Golden is reportedly accused of multiple counts of sexual harassment and stalking.

According to Florida's student newspaper The Alligator, a formal Title IX complaint was filed against Golden on September 27 for alleged violations of the school's equal opportunity policy.

The lawsuit accuses Golden of making unwanted advances and stalking women on social media. These women also include students from Florida.

From the alligator:

The allegations of sexual harassment, which could include sexual exploitation, cited unwanted sexual advances on Instagram, requests for sexual favors, sending photos and videos of his genitals while traveling for UF and various instances of stalking.

There was allegedly more than one occasion where Golden took photos of women walking or driving and sent those images to the people involved. During various stalking incidents, Golden also showed up at locations where he knew the women would be.

The report cites two women who allegedly experienced Golden's behavior. One of them said she had been stalked by Golden “more than 10 times” and that he had sent her pictures of his genitals.

Golden, 39, is in his third season as Florida's head coach and his wife is mentioned in his bio on the school's website. Florida hired him after the 2021-22 season to replace Mike White.

Golden was hired in Florida not long after the Gator made detailed allegations of misconduct against former women's basketball coach Cameron Newbauer. Newbauer resigned in July 2021 after players had repeatedly accused him of abusive behavior. Following Newbauer's resignation, the school stated that it had asked Newbauer for “corrective action” and that it had “not seen the improvements needed.” Athletic director Scott Stricklin also said he ultimately took responsibility for the culture of the women's basketball program.

Newbauer was the first coach Stricklin hired after coming from Mississippi State. Stricklin hired Golden and said Thursday that he would retain football coach Billy Napier as the Gators are 4-4 with four games remaining in the season.

Golden took over the men's basketball program after the team went 20-14 during the 2021-22 season. The Gators were just 16-17 in Golden's first season. Last season, Florida improved by eight wins and was 24-12 after losing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed. The Gators are 2-0 this season heading into a game against Grambling on Monday night.

Before coming to Florida, Golden was the head coach in San Francisco for three seasons. The Dons had two successful seasons during his tenure there, reaching the NCAA Tournament in his final season. Before beginning his coaching career, Golden played basketball at Saint Mary's.

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