‘I was in hell:’ Alex Cooper speaks on alleged sexual harassment

Cooper said she turned to Brown and locked eyes with her.

“Casey, help me,” she pleaded.

Brown turned away, Cooper said, “and did nothing about it.”

Cooper alleged this week in a two-part Hulu documentary, “Call Her Alex,” that she faced persistent sexual harassment from Feldman, who retired from BU in 2022. On Thursday, Cooper elaborated on those painful moments in a telephone interview with the Globe.

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Cooper, host of the immensely popular podcast “Call Her Daddy,” alleged that for the three years of her college soccer career (2013-15), Feldman abused her power as coach by touching her inappropriately, constantly attempting to be alone with her, retaliating against her, and making inappropriate comments of a sexual nature.

In a statement to the Globe, Brown said she had “no recollection of what has been suggested” by Cooper.

“But let me be absolutely clear: I would never ignore, dismiss or turn away from anyone — a player, a teammate, a friend, a family member — who sought my help in any capacity. As a coach, I understood the weight of my responsibility to protect my players and act accordingly. The suggestion that I would do otherwise is completely false.”

The Globe has approached Feldman and her representatives for comment multiple times since Monday.

In a statement from the university provided to the Globe by executive media relations director Colin Riley, BU said:

“Boston University has a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment. We have a robust system of resources, support, and staff dedicated to student well-being and a thorough reporting process through our Equal Opportunity Office. We encourage members of our community to report any concerns, and we remain committed to fostering a safe and secure campus environment for all.”

Cooper alleged that was not her experience.

She said Feldman inspired her while recruiting her, and “by my sophomore year” in 2014, she said, “I was in hell.”

Feldman, she said, would harass her almost daily. She would talk “about my money makers, and my face as my money maker,” Cooper said. She added that Feldman touched her “in a way that would make me aware of her physical power, like putting her hand on my neck after practice, and like squeezing my neck and saying, ‘We need to have a one-on-one talk.’ … And a hand on the thigh when she’s saying something inappropriate … but then leans back and laughs.”

Cooper said she felt powerless and took pains to avoid interacting with her coach.

During meetings, “I would always try to see if we could keep the door open,” Cooper said.

“I would make an excuse of, ‘Oh, I think, you know, this person may be stopping by, we should talk about the game with her.’ I was never able to deny her wanting one on ones, and that was difficult, because you can’t say no to this person. They hold the keys to your entire career.

“It started to come to the point where I was physically sick before practices, where I would try to take different routes to study hall so I didn’t have to walk past her door, because if I ever walked past her door, I was going into that room and there was a closed-door meeting. It was all-consuming. I felt like a shell of a human being.”

And Cooper said when she and her family brought concerns to BU, administrators did nothing to help.

In the first week of April 2016 in a conference room down the hall from Feldman’s office, Cooper said she and her parents, Laurie and Bryan, brought these allegations to BU athletic director Drew Marrochello, who has been in his role since 2014.

Cooper said in the documentary, and confirmed to the Globe, that her mother, who is a therapist, started documenting her daughter’s interactions with Feldman soon after her daughter began raising concerns. They presented the details in a notebook, which sat on the conference table for the meeting. Marrochello, Cooper said, ignored it.

Also present, Cooper said, was Bethany Ellis, then the school’s senior associate director of athletics, senior woman administrator, and deputy Title IX coordinator. Ellis represented BU athletics on campus committees such as the Minors Protection Steering Group and the Sexual Misconduct Working Group. She left BU in 2019 and is now athletic director at Wellesley College.

Ellis, reached by telephone Friday morning, declined to comment on the allegations but added, “I wish that I could.”

Cooper said that since that day in 2016, she never heard from BU’s administration about her case.

But she said her social media inboxes have been overflowing with responses.

“In coming forward with my story, I’ve been overwhelmed by the number of women who have reached out me — many with similar experiences at BU and other universities,” Cooper said.

“I understand why women and certain athletes do not come forward, because the system is completely flawed and terrifying,” Cooper said, “and it almost seems like if you come forward, there’s a potential that it’s more harm than good.”

Matt Porter can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @mattyports.