If it seems like Rutgers’ athletic department can’t do anything right, that’s because it really can’t.
Over the past three years no school has experienced more dysfunction, ranging from physically abusive coaches to alleged emotionally abusive administrators to firings to player arrests and everything in between.
Rutgers’ move to the Big Ten should have marked one of the proudest eras in school history. Instead, the last few years have been marred by incidents aplenty. Here is the timeline detailing just how far Rutgers’ image has fallen.
December 13, 2012: Mike Rice suspended three games and fined $50,000 for abusive behavior towards his players
Then AD Tim Pernetti told reporters the punishment stemmed from something that “occurred during practice and involved players” but did not reveal anything further. Four months later, his reticence wouldn’t matter.
April 2, 2013: “Outside the Lines” airs video from Rice’s practices that includes throwing basketballs at players’ heads
In a word, it looked bad.
April 3, 2013: Mike Rice fired by school
One day after OTL released the incriminating tapes, Rutgers terminated Rice’s contract.
April 5, 2015: Athletic director Tim Pernetti resigns after mishandling Mike Rice situation
After Rice was out, the fallout from the Rice tape was far from over. Pernetti resigned days later over his mishandling of the situation. He made himself out to be a scapegoat and said while he was inclined to fire Rice after seeing the video, senior officials urged him to just suspend him.
May 10, 2013: New men’s basketball coach Eddie Jordan admits he never graduated from Rutgers
Men’s hoops seemed to be in the clear when they replaced Rice with beloved alum Eddie Jordan. This being Rutgers, it was too perfect. Four weeks after being hired, Jordan admitted he never actually received a degree from Rutgers. Whoops.
May 25, 2013: Newark Star-Ledger reports that Tennessee volleyball players accused new athletic director Julie Hermann of humiliation, fear and emotional abuse
Rutgers was also far from out of the woods upon hiring new AD Julie Hermann, who came with tons of baggage herself. A damning NJ.com report outlined the experience several Tennessee volleyball players had playing under Hermann in the ‘90s, alleging she “had ruled through humiliation, fear and emotional abuse.”
Nov. 13, 2013: NJ.com reports that DB Jevon Tyree accused defensive coordinator Dave Cohen of bullying
Things subsided in the summer of 2013, but allegations of abuse started trickling out of the football program the following semester. Tyree said Cohen’s bullying led him to quit the team earlier that month.
May 12, 2014: Transfer QB Philip Nelson arrested for assault outside bar
The Minnesota transfer was arrested for assault in Mankato for kicking former Mankato State LB Isaac Kolstad in the head while he lay unconscious, leaving him with a severe, near-fatal brain injury.
May 24, 2015: CB Darian Dailey arrested for robbery with a firearm
Dailey allegedly stole $20 from someone riding a bicycle in Sarasota, FL at 2:00 AM on a Sunday morning. He would be kicked off the team four days later.
September 3, 2015: Five football players arrested for home invasions, assault
Two days before the 2015 season kicked off, five players were arrested and charged with “assaulting a group of individuals, including one student whose jaw was broken during the unprovoked attack.”
September 12, 2015: WR Leonte Carroo arrested for simple assault, domestic violence
Rutgers’ off-the-field issues started spiraling out of control two weeks into the 2015 season as Carroo was arrested and charged with simple assault and domestic violence, regarding an incident that occurred outside Rutgers’ training facility.
September 16, 2015: Head coach Kyle Flood suspended three games, fined $50,000
After an investigation found Flood had impermissibly contacted a professor (and lamely attempted to cover it up, to boot), he was suspended for three games and fined $50,000. Many believe he should have been fired outright, but if Rutgers has shown us anything, it’s that this storm is far from over.
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