Disgraced ex-Baylor coach Art Briles is back in the news.
AL.com reports that Briles was, for some reason, invited to the Birmingham Football Coaching Clinic by UAB coaches to speak to high school coaches in a session titled, “Making Concepts Into Themes.”
When approached by a reporter afterword, Briles declined any questions about the sprawling sexual assault scandal in Waco that led to his ouster (citing an agreement with Baylor). What he did talk about however, was getting back into the game of football and possibly coaching another decade or more at some level.
“It might be as a volunteer, or it might be as a consultant,” Briles said. “There are a lot of different opportunities, but we’ll just have to see if that’s what it leads to. This is the first time in my life that I’ve ever been open and free because I started coaching before I graduated college.”
Biles was connected to openings this offseason as diverse as the Auburn offensive coordinator gig to various Group of Five jobs to his old stomping ground at Houston. While he did spend a little time with some NFL teams last year, the former Baylor coach remains unemployed in any formal capacity.
Given that the Baylor scandal continues to unfold and there are still numerous lawsuits relating to the matter still set to make their way through the courts, it seems difficult to imagine a college giving Briles an opportunity anytime soon. That’s not to say he couldn’t wind up as some sort of analyst, offensive consultant or even a high school coach somewhere desperate to win games.
This coaching clinic appearance was no accident and probably the latest step in Briles’ rehab tour. Hopefully though, it will be the last time his name appears in a headline for the foreseeable future.
