EDITOR'S NOTE: This article discusses allegations of sexualized hazing. Viewer discretion is advised.
The head wrestling coach at Peoria’s Liberty High School has been put on administrative leave while the school district investigates additional allegations of sexualized hazing made by student athletes.
Coach Eric Brenton, who is also a history teacher at the school, is on paid administrative leave, according to a letter sent to wrestlers and their parents Wednesday night.
The letter said the school district decided to reopen a past investigation into the program due to new allegations that were shared with the media.
“We encourage those with information related to this case to reach out directly to the Peoria Unified School District’s Human Resources Department or the Peoria Police Department,” Liberty Principal Sawn Duguid stated in the letter.
ABC15 has interviewed several students who claim to be victims of hazing or witnesses to inappropriate sexualized activity, and we will be airing a report Thursday night.
Liberty has a powerhouse wrestling program and frequently makes it to the state championships.
Two weeks ago, Kim Cobb, a parent of a former Liberty wrestler, addressed the Peoria Unified School Board about the hazing allegations.
“PUSD needs to stop inoculating themselves against legal action and bad press by simply denying or ignoring sexual harassment and sexual hazing is active in their schools,” Cobb said at the board meeting. “If you do not want this cycle to continue at your schools across the district, then you must bring all of it to light.”
In 2024, school district officials and the Peoria Police Department both investigated allegations of sexualized hazing both in the wrestling room and at an out-of-town trip.
Videos of at least two incidents were sent to police.
According to the police report, one video was described as depicting a wrestler getting on top of a teammate, allegedly placing his crotch and genitalia in the boy’s face and repeatedly moving up and down.
Another video allegedly showed wrestlers holding down a teammate on a hotel bed, pulling off his pants, and leaving him with total exposure of his lower body.
Peoria officers also reached out to several wrestling families, asking to interview their children about the possible existence of a “penetration pole."
“Any adults or parents who think this is acceptable behavior, boys being boys, the way it always has been, or a rite of passage, is part of the problem,” Cobb said at the meeting.
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However, Peoria police had closed that investigation, stating in their report that they could not locate the victims and the incidents did not currently rise to a level of criminal prosecution.
A Peoria Unified School District spokesperson told ABC15 they take all allegations of harm involving students very seriously, adding a comprehensive internal investigation was completed in 2024 and was referred to the Arizona Department of Education.
At the conclusion of the previous internal investigation, Liberty High School self-reported a potential recruiting violation to the Arizona Interscholastic Association and suspended Coach Brenton from the wrestling program for one year.
That suspension is now over, and Brenton had returned to his position as head coach for this season.
At the board meeting, Cobb said the district closed the prior investigation of the wrestling program prematurely and said the district was not being transparent.
Since the initial investigation in 2024, the district said it has improved oversight of Liberty Wrestling, including the installation of additional cameras, increased supervision, and greater involvement from the Athletic Director to support a positive team culture built on integrity.
“The wrestling program will continue its normal camp activities under the supervision of Noah Gregorovic,” Principal Duguid said in his letter. ”Thank you for your patience and understanding as we move through this challenge while maintaining a focus on the 2025-26 Liberty wrestling season.”
