College Football Player Shot Twice After Preventing Attempted Sexual Assault

SUNY Cortland linebacker Kyle Richard was shot in each of his legs while chasing an alleged perpetrator after preventing a sexual assault.

Mary Ann Georgantopoulos of BuzzFeed News reported the news Wednesday, noting the incident occurred when Richard attended a house party in July 2017.

Richard said he responded to a woman's cry from a bathroom, broke open the door with one of his friends and encountered a woman crying and bleeding with a man attempting an assault behind her.

The linebacker chased the man after the woman told him it was an attempted rape. The man then shot at Richard three times outside, hitting him twice before fleeing.

According to Georgantopoulos, former vice president Joe Biden recognized Richard with the Biden Courage Award from It's on Us on Wednesday. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell also wrote a letter congratulating Richard.

"He did stop the sexual assault," a Nassau Police Department spokesperson said of Richard, per Georgantopoulos.

Georgantopoulos noted Ahkhazyah Wright was charged with two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of criminal use of a firearm, attempted sexual abuse, unlawful imprisonment and criminal obstruction of breathing. While he pleaded not guilty, he is currently in jail.

Richard fully recovered from the gunshot wounds and returned to the football team in 2017.

He did more than just return and thrived for the SUNY Cortland defense. According to the school's official athletics website, Richard finished the 2017 campaign second on the team with 75 total tackles.