Grambling State and Washington Commanders legend Doug Williams is none too pleased about the historically Black university’s hire of former Baylor head coach Art Briles.
Briles was hired this week as the Tigers offensive coordinator by first-year head coach Hue Jackson. The hire of Briles comes with tremendous controversy.
Williams, who played at Grambling and later won four SWAC championships in two stints as head coach, ripped the hire of Briles in a recent interview with Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post.
“I’m very, very disappointed in Grambling,” Williams said. “I talked to the A.D. a couple times. They new where I stood, but they did it and if that’s what they want to do, that’s fine. I’m out.”
Briles was fired by Baylor in 2016 following an external investigation into accusations of sexual assault found at the school. The investigation found football administrators failed to properly identify and handle reports of sexual assault or violence by 17 women that involved 19 players.
Briles denied knowledge of the incidents although the investigative report found that he was made aware but failed to report at least one incident.
Since being fired by Baylor, Briles has struggled to find work as a coach. He appeared to have landed assistant jobs with the CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Southern Mississippi. However public backlash reversed those hires.
Briles worked overseas in Italy and later at a Texas high school.
“I don’t know Art Briles; I’ve never met him in my life,” Williams added to the Post. “But the situation, nobody else would hire him for whatever reason. I don’t know why Grambling State had to go be the one to hire him, so I’m not a fan at all.”
In August, the NCAA cleared Briles of any NCAA violations but criticized his actions while at Baylor.
