The remarks sparked a significant backlash, and Huggins issued an apology. The audio emerged on the media industry website Awful Announcing and quickly spread. Huggins then said, "What it was, was all those f-gs, those Catholic f-gs, I think."Īccording to the university, Huggins has agreed to make "a substantial donation" to Xavier to support the school's Center for Faith and Justice and Center for Diversity and Inclusion for "the disparaging way in which the Catholic faith was characterized in the comments." In a radio interview on News Radio 700 WLW in Cincinnati, where Huggins used to coach (at the University of Cincinnati), he discussed an incident with the host in which Huggins recalled "rubber penises" were thrown on the floor of a Crosstown Shootout game between Cincinnati and Xavier. The university soon after condemned his words and announced that it was reviewing the incident. The decision came after nearly two days of deliberations, after Huggins appeared on a Cincinnati-area radio station Monday. The decision came from the highest levels of the school, including Gee and the university administration, the school's board of trustees and the athletic department. Huggins met with Gee on Tuesday and expressed contrition for the remarks, sources told ESPN. The $1 million from Huggins' reduced salary will support the university's LGBTQ+ Center, the Carruth Center and "other state and national organizations that support marginalized communities." It is expected he will work with the Center and the University to raise awareness on how we can best support our students' health and well-being." Huggins, 69, also will be required to meet with leadership from the university's Carruth Center "to better understand the mental health crisis facing our college students, particularly those in marginalized communities. The Williams Institute, based at UCLA, conducts independent research on sexual orientation and gender identity law and policy. The university said that, "according to the Williams Institute, West Virginia has the highest percentage of transgender youth in the nation. To address the concerns of our West Virginia youth, Coach Huggins will be required to meet with LGBTQ+ leaders from across West Virginia with guidance from the leadership of WVU's LGBTQ+ Center." This training and programming will be required of Coach Huggins and all current and future athletics coaching staff." The school said it will partner with the university's LGBTQ+ Center "to develop annual training sessions that will address all aspects of inequality including homophobia, transphobia, sexism, ableism and more. The university, in a statement from president Gordon Gee and athletic director Wren Baker, said that "any incidents of similar derogatory and offensive language will result in immediate termination." The million-dollar salary reduction is believed to be one of the biggest in college athletics. Huggins' amended salary reduces what he makes from $4.2 million to $3.2 million. Huggins' suspension will take place during the Mountaineers' first three regular-season games, and his contract will be amended from a multiyear agreement to a year-by-year pact that will begin May 10, 2023, and end April 30, 2024. Huggins has agreed to a million-dollar salary reduction, a three-game suspension and sensitivity training. West Virginia basketball coach Bob Huggins will return to the sideline next season in the wake of using an anti-gay slur in a radio interview earlier this week. Men's College Basketball, West Virginia Mountaineers You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserīob Huggins takes $1M salary reduction for anti-gay slur
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