Matt Araiza plans NFL comeback after gang-rape charge dropped
The resurrection of “Punt God” is underway.
Matt Araiza, whose mighty left leg led to his mythical nickname, saw his lifelong NFL dream dashed in an instant last August when he was accused of gang rape while at San Diego State University.
Araiza, a sixth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, was cut by the Bills from a four-year, $3.8 million contract without even making a regular-season punt a week after a 17-year-old high school senior sued him and two San Diego State teammates.
She accused them of rape at Araiza’s off-campus house in October 2021, revealing that police and prosecutors were also investigating the trio.
The 17-year-old said she had sex with Araiza, then 21, outside the house but claimed he then led her inside where at least three other men, including Zavier Leonard and Pa’a Ewaliko, raped her face-down on a bed so violently that she was left bloodied and drifted out of consciousness.
The attack only ended when the party was closed down, she claimed.
Documents unsealed this week revealed that prosecutors had concluded from 101 minutes of recordings, including sex tapes made by the other two players, that Araiza — dubbed college football’s best punter in his unanimous All-American junior season — wasn’t even at the party during the alleged attack.
Matt Araiza dominated college football as a punter at San Diego State University, winning the Ray Guy Award in his junior season. Now he says he wants to get his career back on track after being cleared of rape. Justin Truong
Prosecutors in San Diego announced in December that no rape charges would be filed against Araiza, now 22, and his former Aztecs teammates.
The video evidence led them to conclude the encounters between Leonard, Ewaliko and the 17-year-old were not clearly forcible.
Ewaliko was charged with possessing child pornography after his phone was seized and denies the charge.
“I was happy that there was so much evidence and that this wasn’t a ‘he-said, she-said’ thing,” Araiza, who had always acknowledged having a consensual encounter with the girl outside but denied being part of a violent attack, told The Post.
Araiza’s punting skills were only seen by Bills fans in pre-season training and one pre-season game. He was cut before he made his regular-season NFL debut. Getty Images
“A lot of cases like this are and it’s up to a jury kind of guessing. I mean, if there’s no evidence either way, it’s somewhat a guess. I’m grateful that’s not the case in this one.”
Araiza is now back at home with his parents in Poway, Calif., training hard to try to break back into the NFL — a goal he acknowledges will be tough despite his cleared name, storied collegiate career and once-promising professional start, including an 82-yard preseason smash against the Colts.
“That’s the goal,” he told The Post. “I think people underestimate how tough it is to make it in the NFL when you’re a free agent and you’ve been out of the game for a year. That just gives teams questions, so I’m just looking for the opportunity to answer those questions.”
Buffalo selected Araiza in the sixth-round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He quickly impressed coaches, kicking an 82-yard bomb during a preseason game and appeared to be line to become the team’s starter. AP
Araiza said he’s “very confident” he’ll be an asset if given an opportunity, whether in Buffalo or elsewhere. His agent has been in contact with a “couple” of teams, but the special teams maven understands organizations typically don’t want players to be potential “distractions,” he said.
“I just think it’s a very rare situation, especially being a punter,” Araiza said. “If I were a quarterback — no question — I’d be on a team right now. No question whatsoever, it’s just the position I play.”
The most difficult period since last summer, Araiza said, was being on the sidelines again.
This is the 82-yard punt which wowed fans in the Bills’ pre-season game with the Colts — now Araiza wants to get back into the NFL to show his skills in full. Buffalo Bills
“It was a journey mentally, for sure,” Araiza said. “It had its ups and downs and there were days I was able to accept it and try to enjoy the little things in life. But then there were days when the big picture was consuming, and I could think about was what I lost.
“Watching Bills’ games — that was brutal. It was a weird thing because I couldn’t not watch them. I was too invested. Knowing so many of the players personally, the coaches, having spent the offseason with them, it was pretty heartbreaking to watch.”
Those games pushed Araiza to the brink, he admitted.
“Angry, cheated,” he said of his emotions. “I felt like I had worked my whole life for this thing and the way it was taken from me was brutal.”
Matt Araiza at the Buffalo Bills practice facility in Orchard Park, just weeks before he was released by the team. Getty Images
Araiza is still being sued by the alleged victim, who offered to settle for $50,000 — an offer he rejected, saying he would consider countersuing her and definitely plans to sue her attorney.
“I’m not willing to pay money to people who damaged my life irreversibly,” Araiza said. “It’s just not something I’m willing to do. But I will never waive my right to sue her attorney — ever. That lawsuit is coming.”
Araiza’s attorney, Kerry Armstrong, has called the civil suit a “shakedown,” while the ex-NFL punter isn’t sure if he was accused due to his celebrity status on campus and likely future gridiron success.
“I don’t know what the motive was, to be honest with you,” he said.
Pa’a Ewaliko (left) and Zavier Leonard were not criminally charged in connection to the alleged attack.
The woman, now 18, said Thursday that the recordings which convinced prosecutors to drop charges show only a portion of what happens.
“I don’t think it exonerates anybody,” she told USA Today Sports.
For now, Araiza said he’s content continuing to hone his craft until some team comes calling.
“I’m not really someone who enjoys the spotlight, to be honest with you,” Araiza told The Post. “I enjoy playing sports at the highest level, and with that, comes a little bit of the spotlight, but I’ll never be a ‘me-before-the-team’ guy.”
Source: New York Post
