Former Baylor coach Art Briles resigns from Texas high school job after two seasons
Former Baylor coach Art Briles resigned from his post as the head coach of Mount Vernon High School on Monday, the school announced.
Briles, the disgraced former Bears coach who was in charge during a massive sexual assault scandal at the university, had been with the Texas high school for two seasons. Prior to that, he had a short coaching stint in Italy.
Briles finished with a 20-6 overall record at Mount Vernon. They fell in the Texas 3A Div. I state semifinals last week.
“After coaching 42 games of football from Florence, Italy, to Mount Vernon, Texas in the last 22 months, I respectfully resign as head football coach and athletic director of the Mount Vernon Tigers,” Briles said in a statement, via Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News. “[My wife] Jan and I will forever be indebted to the great folks of Mount Vernon for welcoming us into their community with trust and open arms! Also much love to the students, teachers and administrators, but most importantly to the players and trainers and coaches that dedicated their souls and spirit to achieve a vision of Tiger Grit! I also want to express a special thanks to Dr. McCullough and the Mount Vernon ISD School Board for their belief and trust.”
Briles was fired from Baylor amid massive scandal
Briles led Baylor from 2008-2015, and finished with a 65-37 overall record there while turning the Bears’ program into a frequent national contender.
He was fired from the school in 2016 after a massive sexual assault scandal rocked the university. One lawsuit, which has been settled, alleged that there were 52 rapes committed by at least 31 different Baylor football players between 2011 and 2014 under Briles’ watch. Briles has said that he “did not cover up sexual violence” there.
Briles had struggled to get another job since he was fired. He was briefly brought on as an assistant with the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats, but that job offer was rescinded after immense backlash. He also interviewed for the offensive coordinator position at Southern Miss, but did not get the job.
So the 65-year-old eventually returned to the high school level in Texas, where he had previously spent two decades coaching before jumping to the collegiate level.
It’s unclear where Briles will land next, though Stadium’s Brett McMurphy reported on Sunday that Briles is a “leading candidate” to take over at Liberty should Hugh Freeze leave. Liberty athletic director Ian McCaw held the same position at Baylor when Briles was there, and he resigned amid the scandal.
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