Days after Alex Cooper accused her former college soccer coach of sexual harassment, Boston University has responded.
The host of the popular “Call Her Daddy” podcast, who made the allegations in a two-part Hulu documentary that premiered Tuesday after screening Sunday at the Tribeca Film Festival, played Division I soccer at the university for three years, during which time Cooper claims coach Nancy Feldman made inappropriate comments about her body and sex life, engaged in controlling behavior and touched her thigh.
“Nancy Feldman was someone I trusted. Someone I believed in. Someone who was supposed to help me grow. Someone who was supposed to protect me,” Cooper wrote Thursday on Instagram. “But instead she made my life a living hell and abused her power over me.”
In the same post, Cooper said she reported the abuse to athletic director Drew Marrochello, who she said ignored her complaints. The university addressed the allegations in a statement obtained Thursday by People and other news outlets.
“Boston University has a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment. We have a robust system of resources, support and staff dedicated to student wellbeing and a thorough reporting process through our Equal Opportunity Office,” the statement reads. “We encourage members of our community to report any concerns, and we remain committed to fostering a safe and secure campus environment for all.”
In an interview with the Boston Globe, Cooper claimed that when she and other teammates contracted mononucleosis, also known as the “kissing disease,” she was the only one Feldman called into her office to ask who she had been with. According to Cooper, she pleaded for then-assistant coach Casey Brown to help her, but Brown did nothing.
In a statement to the Globe, Brown said she had “no recollection” of the event.
“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,” Brown told the Globe. “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.”
While Cooper’s documentary began as a way to show behind-the-scenes footage of her 2023 Unwell Tour, a visit to Boston University — specifically the soccer field — brought her emotions back to the surface, she said in Tuesday’s brief episode of “Call Her Daddy” titled “My College Soccer Trauma.”
“The minute I stepped on that field, I felt so small,” Cooper said. “I felt like I was 18 years old again, completely powerless, with no voice.”
Cooper said “everything changed” when she discovered that other women had alleged similar experiences with Feldman. She decided that she needed to come forward after talking to one of the women.
“If a woman in my position, who has power and a platform, is still fearful, is still scared of speaking out about my own lived experience of sexual harassment, how the hell will any other woman feel safe and confident to come forward?” Cooper asked in the episode.
Since “Call Her Alex” premiered, TikTok user @sizzlinghotsarah shared her own experience with Feldman, alleging that the soccer coach harassed her for her sexuality. Cooper responded to the post, “I’m sick I’m so sorry she did this to you. Reaching out to u privately.”
Feldman retired in 2022, but Cooper claims the harassment continues under her successor.
“Call Her Alex” also traces her journey to becoming one of the top podcasters in the world. Featured in the documentary are Cooper’s former co-host Sofia Franklyn, husband Matt Kaplan, lifelong friend Lauren McMullen, who is an executive producer on the podcast, and Dave Portnoy, founder of Barstool Sports — the previous home of “Call Her Daddy.”
Cooper has become known for her revelatory interviews with everyone from Hailey Bieber and Paris Hilton to Monica Lewinsky and Jane Goodall. Last year, Cooper sat down with then-Vice President and presidential hopeful Kamala Harris — chronicled in the documentary.
Cooper created her own podcast network, Unwell, in 2023 and has hired emerging talent including Madeline Argy, Owen Thiele and Alix Earle, who abruptly left in February. In August 2024, Cooper signed a $125-million deal with SiriusXM.
