Criminal complaint details rape charge against former NDSCS football player

Raymond Ruschel

WAHPETON, N.D. (KFGO KVRR) – A former North Dakota State College of Science football player remains at large after he was charged with raping an unconscious woman at his apartment last fall.

A Richland County District Court judge has issued an arrest warrant for Raymond Ruschel. Ruschel gained nationwide fame after suiting up for the NDSCS college football team in 2022 as a 49-year-old.

Court documents filed in the felony gross sexual imposition case say the victim had fallen asleep at Ruschel’s Wahpeton apartment after an evening of having a few drinks and hanging out with him and others the night of November 23, 2024. Prosecutors allege she awoke to Ruschel taking her clothes off and engaging in sexual acts with her. The complaint says she was going in and out of consciousness, and tried to push him off her with her legs to stop the assault.

When investigators questioned Ruschel, he denied the allegations, according to prosecutors.

NDSCS issued a statement, saying in part, they “take these allegations with the utmost seriousness.”