The world of sports tends to focus on wins, titles and records, as well it should, as athletes work tirelessly to perform at the highest level, searching to climb the figurative mountaintop that is a championship. However, there are times where the narratives our athletes write command a different sort of attention, such as when Jason Collins opened the door for homosexuality in professional sports. On Thursday in Waco, Texas, Baylor University called our attention to one of those occasions.
The Baylor football program hasn't had the most typical offseason. Generally speaking, the buzz surrounding a college football team in the spring and summer is about spring practice, the NFL Draft and recruiting. That wasn't the case for the Bears however, as allegations of sexual assault against multiple players clouded the headlines. The administration of the university took action Thursday, shaking up leadership by firing head football coach Art Briles, putting athletic director Ian McCaw on probation and demoting president Ken Starr. These moves were likely an effort to shut the door on this scandal, but unfortunately for Baylor, this is just the beginning.
With Briles out, the Bears' 2017 recruiting class will likely take a major hit, and Baylor loses the head man who led the team to a 50-15 record over the last five seasons. However, this story has little to do with what will take place on the gridiron in Waco this fall. Firing Briles, a successful coach who has brought a former also-ran to the national forefront, sends a message: Sometimes doing the right thing is more important than winning.
At the core of the Baylor sexual assault scandal is Boise State transfer Sam Ukwuachu, a 2012 Freshman All-American for the Broncos. Records state that in May of 2013, Ukwuachu would drunkenly break a window while arguing with a woman with whom reports say he had an abusive relationship. The broken glass cut his arm badly enough for medical attention to be necessary. No criminal charges were filed after a Boise police investigation. Ukwuachu was dismissed from the team in that same month for — you guessed it — a "violation of team rules."
Ukwuachu would then transfer to Baylor to continue his college football career, but he couldn't stay out of trouble. On Oct. 20, just five months after being dismissed from the Boise State program, a woman was in the hospital after being sexually assaulted, and she identified Ukwuachu as the perpetrator.
At the time, Ukwuachu was sitting out for a year due to NCAA transfer rules, and he was on track to suit up for the Bears beginning the following season. However, that didn't happen. Ukwuachu was left off Baylor's fall roster in 2014, reason being that he had "some issues" to deal with, defensive coordinator Phil Bennett told reporters at the time.
The news was quiet for about a year, until the 6-foot-4 defensive end was put on trial in August of 2015 and found guilty of sexual assault. The jury also heard testimony from Ukwuachu's ex-girlfriend, who said that he choked her and hit her in the head on multiple occasions, prompting him to enroll in anger management while at Boise State.
Ukwuachu never played a down of Baylor football, but that doesn't mean Briles handled the situation properly. Chris Petersen coached Boise State at the time of Ukwuachu's dismissal, and he claims to have "thoroughly" explained the incidents that led up to it. Briles however claims not to have been aware of the incidents in Boise. Let me ask you which of these scenarios makes more sense. The first possibility is that Petersen, who now coaches at Washington, left out some details during his conversation with Briles because he wanted Ukwuachu to get a second chance. That's certainly possible, but Petersen would then have no reason to lie when asked if he disclosed the information. He could simply say that he wanted the best for his former player. The other option is that Petersen told Briles all about Ukwuachu's off-field incidents, but Briles, knowing he was getting an incredibly talented football player, decided to let it slide. Which of those sounds more likely? I'll let you decide.
Ukwuachu wasn't the only player being accused of sexual assault. Defensive end Tevin Elliott was kicked off the team and later expelled after multiple women told police Elliott raped or assaulted them. Briles is accused of having knowledge of allegations against Elliott and ignoring them, before he was eventually convicted. This year, Shawn Oakman, a Baylor defensive end with incredible size and athleticism went undrafted and remains a free agent after being charged with sexual assault. Oakman was also accused of sexual assault back in 2013, but his then-girlfriend decided not to press charges.
Briles can deny knowledge of any of these allegations until the day he dies, but ignorance wasn't a good enough excuse to save his job. A college football coach should be expected to not only win games, but produce quality young men. Whether Briles knew anything about these cases or not, and I'm fairly confident he did, he certainly should have. A coach's job is to manage his players, and Briles has allowed at least three players to commit multiple violent acts against women on his watch.
The fact that Baylor has moved on from a coach who has brought them incredible success tells us a lot about sports today. Sports, and football in particular, have stepped up their game in handling cases of domestic violence or sexual assault. There is still a world of progress to be made, but where Briles mismanaged this situation, Baylor stepped in and righted the ship. So to whoever pulled the trigger in cutting ties with Briles, I commend you. As sports fans, we tend to lose sight of what's truly important, and we hate seeing anything get in the way of our favorite teams. Thank you, Baylor. You have proven that as a culture, we are making strides to punish players for misconduct and not letting anyone be above the law, or even the standards of morality. Here's to hoping the rest of the sports world follows suit.