Of all of the fallout from the Baylor scandal, the firing of the Bears’ wildly successful head football coach by far garnered the most attention. Now, the subject of that dismissal is, for the first time, speaking out -- and very contritely, as it turns out.
In a statement released to Julie Hays of KWTX-TV, Art Briles acknowledged that "[a]fter 38 years of coaching, I have certainly made mistakes and, in hindsight, I would have done certain things differently.” In an Outside the Lines report released a week or so before Briles’ firing, it was alleged that, among other things, Briles was made aware of an unnamed Bears football player assaulting his girlfriend on at least two occasions and did not mete out any type of discipline.
The summary of an independent review into the football program’s handling of sexual assault accusations showed that “members of the Baylor coaching staff chose not to report incidents of sexual violence involving football players, [instead] meeting directly with those filing complaints of sexual abuse and handling their own investigations outside of university policy to discredit the complainants, thus denying them the right to a fair investigation by the university.” The report went on to say that the football program, under Briles’ direction, opted to handle discipline internally rather than involve the university.
At least a half-dozen women, if not more, are alleged to have either been sexually assaulted or physically abused by BU football players during Briles’ time in Waco.
“My heart goes out to the victims for the pain that they have endured,” Briles statement to the television station began. “Sexual assault has no place on our campus or in our society. As a father of two daughters, a grandfather, and a husband, my prayers are with the victims of this type of abuse, wherever they are.”
In eight seasons at the school, Briles went 65-37, including 10 or more wins in four of the past five seasons; the school had one 10-win season in the 106 years prior to Briles’ arrival.
Shortly after the firing was announced, BU confirmed that former Wake Forest head coach Jim Grobe would take over for Briles on an interim basis.
Below is the remainder of Briles’ statement.Keep in mind, the complete scope of what happened here has not been disclosed and unfortunately at this time I am contractually obligated to remain silent on the matter. The report prepared by Pepper Hamilton, the law firm hired and paid for by Baylor’s Board of Regents, has not been shared with me directly, despite my full cooperation with the investigation. I can only assume that the report, which is not independent, supports the conclusions that the Board has already drawn. I hope to share with you what I was aware of as soon as I can so Baylor Nation can begin the healing process.
I have the utmost admiration for Baylor University, its community, and its important mission. I am truly grateful for having had the chance to coach hundreds of young student athletes at this University. I am deeply humbled for having had the opportunity to be a part of Baylor Nation.