Stanford Must Make the Tough Choice

The Stanford football program has had its share of disappointments recently. Consider:

- Four straight 3-9 seasons.

- Four straight Big Game losses.

- Dozens of players transferring out.

- Tens of thousands of empty seats in Stanford Stadium.

You would think it couldn't get much worse.

That is, until last week, when ESPN reported that two independent investigations had found that Stanford head coach Troy Taylor had bullied and belittled female Athletic Department staffers, tried to have a compliance officer fired after she reported rules violations in his program, and made Inappropriate comments about another woman's appearance and "smell."

Taylor hadn't even coached his first game for Stanford when the first investigation was launched in May of 2023 after multiple complaints about his behavior. The initial inquiry revealed an atmosphere in the football program that was hostile, aggressive and unwelcoming to women.

The second investigation, begun in June of '24, found an "ongoing pattern of concerning behavior." This despite the fact that Taylor had signed a letter after the initial probe acknowledging that he could be fired if his objectionable conduct continued.

More than 30 former and current Stanford athletic staff members cooperated with the independent investigators, several of whom reportedly feared retribution from Taylor if they were identified. 

The second investigator noted that Taylor's treatment of the compliance officer was "discriminatory on the basis of her sex" and that he'd never seen such a level of "animosity and disdain."

Though the violations were minor, the investigator noted "the football program has disregarded or simply not followed NCAA rules that they have been repeatedly and consistently educated on by the Compliance Office."

So far, there has been no official comment from football General Manager Andrew Luck, outgoing Athletic Director Bernard Muir, or new university President Jonathan Levin.

Their silence is deafening.

An official statement from a University spokesperson said Taylor had received "coaching", and his own statement--which sounded like it had been drafted by lawyers--said he viewed the investigations as a "learning opportunity."

Yet he was found to have continued the objectionable conduct after the first written warning. The fact that he wasn't fired at that point indicates the university was going to sweep this matter under the rug.

Until, that is, the reports were leaked to ESPN and the proverbial shit hit the fan.

I don't know Taylor. I've never met him. But friends of mine who knew him in Sacramento are surprised by these revelations.

I've been privileged to know all but one (Walt Harris) of the previous 12 Stanford coaches very well, dating back to 1967--John Ralston, Jack Christiansen, Bill Walsh, Rod Dowhower, Paul Wiggin, Jack Elway, Denny Green, Tyrone Willingham, Buddy Teevens, Jim Harbaugh and David Shaw. 

I  was close friends with most of them. Wiggin, Walsh and Willingham are among the finest men I've ever known. They treated their colleagues and subordinates in the athletic department--male and female--with the utmost respect.

My only contact with Taylor has come from Zoom press conferences, during which he has behaved appropriately. So I have no way of judging him from personal experience.

But if these reports are true, President Levin and GM Luck are facing a difficult decision, made more difficult by the timing. 

Spring practice starts next week, and the season is only five months away. But there's no need to wait for a new Athletic Director, since Luck controls the football program and the coach reports to him. 

To me, the choice is clear.

Stanford has had its share of controversies during the past few years, including the elimination of 11 sports (later reversed), the Varsity Blues admissions scandal, the suicide of a woman's soccer player, numerous on-campus sexual assaults, several free speech issues, the Elizabeth Holmes and Sam Bankman-Fried frauds, and questions about the research of former president Marc Tessier-Lavigne.

Now reports of repeated bullying, misogyny and rules violations by the head football coach, one who has won six games in two years.

This is yet another stain on the university's image, and it needs to be removed.