Dive Summary:
- Rutgers University has announced it will hire an independent investigator to review how the school dealt with the actions of former men's basketball coach Mike Rice.
- Rice was fired when ESPN publicized a video showing the coach throwing basketballs and yelling homophobic slurs at players during practice.
- Athletic director Tim Pernetti resigned two days later, admitting his first instinct was to fire Rice; Ralph Izzo, chairman of Rutgers' Board of Governors, claimed Mark Hershhorn, chairman of the athletics committee, watched the video in December but rejected a claim from ESPN reporter Brett McMurphy that three board members had seen the video then, too.
Appears Pernetti is sacrificial lamb since at least 3 board members also saw Rice video & agreed w/initial suspension
— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN) April 5, 2013
Tim Pernetti's letter of resignation. He wanted to initially fire Rice, but wasn't allowed scarletknights.com/news/release.a…
— Brett McMurphy (@McMurphyESPN) April 5, 2013
From the article:
"... Meanwhile, the FBI is investigating whether Murdock tried to extort the university before he made the videos showing the behavior that cost Rice his job.
A person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press Sunday that investigators are interested in Murdock, who left his job as the men's basketball program's player development director last year and later provided the video to university officials and ESPN. ..."