Chris Beard the main candidate for Ole Miss basketball job

Up to date March 8: Chris Beard is rising because the front-runner for the boys’s basketball head teaching job at Ole Miss, in line with ESPN, citing sources. Beard was fired from his place on the College of Texas following a Dec. 12, 2022 arrest.

Chris Beard’s teaching profession will finish when he needs it to, not when another person decides it for him. In America, allegedly biting and strangling a girl in your house isn’t sufficient to maintain a very good coach off the sidelines — even when your former employer nonetheless stands by the choice to fireside you for trigger even after the preliminary prices had been dropped.

In accordance with a report from ESPN, Beard is the main candidate for the boys’s head basketball teaching job at Ole Miss, as either side have been involved. Beard was fired because the College of Texas males’s basketball coach in January as a consequence of a December arrest for a home incident along with his fianceé.

“He simply snapped on me and have become tremendous violent,” learn the affidavit from Randi Trew — Beard’s fiancée. “He choked me, threw me out of bed, bit me, bruises throughout my leg, throwing me round, and going nuts.”

“Coach Beard is 100% harmless of those prices,” his legal professional Perry Minton, informed the Austin American-Statesman, after the arrest.

Weeks later, she was singing a special tune.

“Chris and I are deeply saddened that we’ve introduced adverse consideration upon our household, associates, and the College of Texas, amongst others. As Chris’ fiancée and largest supporter, I apologize for the function I performed on this unlucky occasion. I understand that my frustration, when breaking his glasses, initiated a bodily wrestle between Chris and myself,” she shared within the assertion.

“Chris didn’t strangle me, and I informed that to regulation enforcement that night. Chris has acknowledged that he was appearing in self-defense, and I don’t refute that. I don’t imagine Chris was attempting to deliberately hurt me in any means. It was by no means my intent to have him arrested or prosecuted. We recognize everybody’s assist and prayers throughout this tough time,” she defined.

After the fees had been dropped, Beard provided an announcement:

“I’m happy with the announcement that the fees in opposition to me have been dismissed,” Beard stated. “Whereas I at all times had religion and confidence within the reality and this end result, it has been extraordinarily difficult to attend patiently and never publicly reply. I’m sorry and deeply remorseful to my household, associates, all my gamers and workers each most up-to-date and previous, and everybody at my alma mater The College of Texas.”

Beard’s profession is much from over

However, as anticipated, Beard’s profession is much from over. There are totally different units of guidelines for males like Beard, particularly in relation to teaching — particularly in faculty basketball.

Beard burst onto the nationwide scene when he took Texas Tech to the nationwide championship sport in 2019. In a season that many will bear in mind for being highlighted by a Duke group that featured Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish, and Tre Jones, it was Beard’s underdog Crimson Raiders that had been a number of possessions away from successful a nationwide title in this system’s first-ever Remaining 4 look, as they fell to Virginia in additional time. Since then, Beard has been one of many hottest names in faculty basketball. After two extra profitable seasons in Lubbock, UT employed him to deliver their program again to glory. It labored.

However, this column isn’t about Texas basketball. It’s about how historical past has proven us that Beard received’t be out of labor lengthy.

Faculty basketball is such a marvel that it owns this complete month — March. No different sport can hold America’s consideration span for that lengthy. Nevertheless, faculty basketball can be a sport through which head coaches have a ton of energy. And if you happen to’re good — and white — followers and athletic administrators will drink copious quantities of an elixir referred to as “Oh, that factor was utterly overblown. Give the man one other probability,” which can give them handy amnesia a couple of coach’s alleged sins whereas additionally permitting them to recollect how helpful that very same coach is in relation to successful video games.

Right here’s an inventory of school basketball head coaches who nonetheless someway have jobs, had been in a position to hold theirs after a scandal, or will probably be employed once more in some unspecified time in the future.

𑇐 Greg Gard (Wisconsin) — A yr after firing a workers member for utilizing the N-word (which led to one of many group’s few Black gamers transferring), Gard virtually had a group mutiny on his arms. He adopted that up by beginning a brawl with Juwan Howard and Michigan throughout a postgame handshake line and got here out of it trying like a sufferer. He’s nonetheless employed.

𑇐 Greg McDermott (Creighton) — Final yr the Bluejays’ head coach will need to have been falling asleep to Django Unchained as he did his greatest reenactment of a slave proprietor. “Guys, we received to stay collectively. We’d like each toes in. I want all people to remain on the plantation. I can’t have anyone go away the plantation,” McDermott informed his group. The varsity suspended him for 5 seconds and rapidly put the scenario within the rearview. He’s nonetheless employed.

𑇐 Gregg Marshall (Wichita State) — In 2020 we came upon that the Shockers coach is a maniac — as a former assistant described him — after it was alleged that he choked one in every of his assistants, punched a participant, body-slammed one other, and made enjoyable of a 3rd athlete’s Native American heritage. There was a prolonged investigation, however Marshall didn’t get fired. As an alternative, he simply resigned and received a contract settlement of $7.75 million.

𑇐 Mark Few (Gonzaga) — Final yr TMZ launched a video of the Zags’ head coach from when he was arrested for a DUI. Few was drunk and irritated and acted as if the police had been beneath him. The footage exhibits Few refusing to do area sobriety exams, as he claimed they’re “completely subjective.” He pled responsible to misdemeanor DUI, was suspended for a number of video games, and the scenario instantly blew over. He’s nonetheless employed.

𑇐 Will Wade (LSU) — LSU’s former coach was caught on an FBI wiretap discussing how he paid gamers. All people heard it and he nonetheless went to work day by day. LSU suspended, then finally fired Wade after NCAA violations got here down in opposition to him and his program, in a transfer that urged that LSU was going to disregard federal proof till the NCAA determined to punish the varsity. He’s not employed, however don’t be shocked when he will get employed once more.

𑇐 Sean Miller (Xavier) — Earlier this week it was introduced that Miller wasn’t going to be sanctioned by the NCAA’s Unbiased Decision Panel from the fallout of what befell when he was at Arizona. Miller and Arizona had been a part of the FBI’s investigation into the game, and it was alleged that he was paying DeAndre Ayton out of his personal pocket. Miller has persistently denied paying gamers. As you may see, Miller is teaching at Xavier like nothing occurred.

𑇐 Rick Pitino (Iona) — Pitino has had allegations and violations in opposition to him since he was an assistant coach at Hawaii within the 1970s. He’s nonetheless teaching.

And final however not least, Mark Adams — the person who changed Beard at Texas Tech — is below suspension for “racially insensitive” feedback as he informed one in every of his gamers that there’s “at all times a grasp and a servant.”

There’s a lot extra to Beard’s story that we’ll by no means know. Nevertheless, a faculty wanting to rent him within the aftermath of what allegedly befell at Texas was as predictable as a Tyler Perry manufacturing.

The mix of Chris Beard’s expertise and whiteness was at all times going to avoid wasting his profession. Why? As a result of, sadly sufficient, somebody at Ole Miss — or some other place — will rent him as a result of they care extra about his suffocating defenses than the truth that he allegedly tried to suffocate his fianceé.