Valley volunteer football coach sentenced in Nebraska for child sex crimes

OMAHA, NE — A Valley volunteer football coach and former NFL player was sentenced this week in a Nebraska federal court for coercion and enticement of a minor.

Nicholas Murphy, 44, pleaded guilty and was sentenced on Thursday to 57 months in federal prison with a 10-year term of supervised release, Department of Justice officials say. Murphy will also pay a $20,000 fine and restitution to the victim.

Video in the player above includes previous reporting on the case.

Officials say Murphy began a relationship with a 17-year-old who was a dancer at a dance studio in Omaha. Murphy and his wife were co-owners of the studio, ABC15 previously reported.

In October 2021, Murphy traveled with the teen from Nebraska to Tuscon, Arizona, where Murphy had sex with the minor in his hotel room.

ABC15 previously reported that Murphy was entering a not-guilty plea, but he ultimately pleaded guilty to persuading and enticing a minor to travel in interstate commerce to engage in sex.

After Murphy was indicted in September 2023, Scottsdale Unified School District sent a letter to families stating that he would not be returning to campus, where he was a volunteer coach for the freshman football team at Desert Mountain High School.