A former U.S. college athlete has been arrested after allegedly threatening to murder tennis ace Maria Sharapova.

Leonard Taylor, 32, is accused of making a series of abusive phone calls to his former mentor Barry Alvarez in which he claimed the Russian beauty had "done him injustices".

He allegedly told Alvarez that he planned to marry the sports star - and then kill her and her family.

Taylor played as a defensive back for the University of Wisconsin football team for three years until 1998.

Alvarez - who was Taylor's head coach and now works as the university's athletic director - is believed to have been a confidante of Taylor's.

It is claimed the former footballer left 29 messages on Alvarez's voicemail last month in which he hurled abuse and made threats against Sharapova and Alvarez.

According to police documents, the messages contained "excessive profanity, threats against Alvarez, and references to how professional tennis player Maria Sharapova (had) done (him) injustices in various ways."

Taylor, of Indianapolis, was arrested on Friday and faces charges of stalking and telephone harassment.