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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Sherrill Paid Investigators To Aid Accused Player, Records Reveal

Compiled From Wire Services

Mississippi State football coach Jackie Sherrill paid private investigators as much as $10,000 to help Derrick Taite fight rape charges in 1993, the former quarterback’s mother says in court documents.

The charges stemmed from an on-campus incident in November 1993 that resulted in a Mississippi State student filing charges against Taite and three other players. A grand jury heard the case but never issued an indictment.

Documents obtained by The Mississippi Press show that Sherrill paid $10,000 to private investigators to help Taite, a former Moss Point High School standout, defend himself after he was charged with attempted rape.

Taite’s mother, Gwendolyn Blackmon, testified in divorce proceedings earlier this year that at the time the rape case was under investigation by an Oktibbeha County grand jury, Sherrill paid two private investigators $5,000 apiece.

In the court document, dated March 10, Blackmon testified that she and her husband, Johnny Blackmon, never had to incur any expenses for Taite’s legal defense.

In response to questions from attorneys about Taite’s legal defense, Blackmon said, “I didn’t have to pay it. It didn’t come out of our personal expenses because it was paid by Coach Sherrill.”

It was unclear that Sherrill’s paying private investigators to help clear Taite’s name violated NCAA rules concerning “extra benefits” for student athletes.