Former Vols set for rape trial

Former Tennessee football players A.J. Johnson and Michael Williams are going on trial to face aggravated rape charges nearly 3½ years after both men were indicted. Jury selection began Monday afternoon for Johnson and Williams. Johnson was a linebacker and Williams a defensive back for Tennessee when a woman told police both men raped her in the early morning hours of Nov. 16, 2014. They were suspended from the team and never played again for Tennessee. Both men were indicted in February 2015. The case was delayed by a debate over whether defense attor- neys could obtain social media communications from witnesses, including the woman who says Johnson and Williams raped her. The Associated Press typically doesn’t identify people who say they are victims of sexual abuse.

❚ Tennessee football player Ryan Thaxton was arrested Sunday and charged with domestic assault and false imprisonment of his girlfriend, according to online court records. “We are aware of the incident,” Tennessee spokesman Zach Stipe wrote in a statement to USA TODAY Network — Tennessee. “The student-athlete has been suspended from all team activities while law enforcement and the university investigates.” The Alexandria, Virginia, native did not play last season.

❚ Jason Franklin, a former walk-on linebacker who earned a scholarship his junior season at Arizona State, has died, his mother posted on Facebook. The cause of death was not immediately known. Franklin was 26. A Simi Valley, California, native, Franklin played for Todd Graham from 2011 to 2015, contributing mostly on special teams. As a senior, Franklin appeared in one game. He graduated with a communications degree in 2015.