APNewsBreak: Fired coach Art Briles lambastes Baylor

Baylor University’s board of regents says it will fire Briles and re-assign university President Kenneth Starr in response to questions about its handling of sexual assault complaints against players.

Former Baylor HC Art Briles is accusing the university of wrongful termination.

Briles, 60, was 65-37 in eight seasons while taking the program to unprecedented heights. Welch and Brown then used information obtained from Briles in the Hernandez matter “in support of Baylor University’s termination of Coach Briles from his job as Head Football Coach on May 26, 2016”, the motion states.

Some members of the Baylor community have claimed that Briles was treated unfairly and that the contents of the Pepper Hamilton investigation should be released publicly. Baylor regents have said releasing more details would violate victim privacy. The Pepper Hamilton review determined that for years the school mishandled rape allegations, and the football program operated as it if was above the rules as coaches and staff interfered with investigations, discipline and potential criminal proceedings.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the big-money donors who pushed to reinstate Briles included Jim Turner, the former chairman of Dr Pepper Bottling Co.; Drayton McLane, the former owner of the Houston Astros baseball team and whose name adorns Baylor’s 2-year-old football stadium; Bob Simpson, an oil-and-gas executive who is a co-owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team; and trial lawyer John Eddie Williams.

Hernandez’ lawsuit claims Baylor knew Tevin Elliott had a history of assaults, failed to protect her and others who were attacked, and ignored her pleas when she sought help. Another lawsuit was filed Wednesday by three women who were all identified only as Jane Doe.

Baylor attorneys last week told the court that the defendants were seeking a settlement with Hernandez.

Briles’ motion states Welch and Brown, between April 7 and Thursday, waived service of process on behalf of Briles without informing him, publicly commented on behalf of Briles without his permission and requested an extension of time to settle Hernandez’s lawsuit, while implying all defendants agreed, without consulting Briles. Still, the above “camouflage” characterization from Briles’ attorney will no doubt resonate with those Baylor fans/alums/boosters that think Briles should not have been fired to begin with, particularly if the allegation that Briles was not informed of why he was being terminated is true. Baylor University and the Board of Regents have refused to provide Coach Art Briles with any information or grounds which they used to support the termination of his employment.