Maryland under fire following death of player
ESPN report paints picture of program with toxic culture under coach DJ Durkin
Maryland Athletics Director Damon Evans issued a letter to university staff, boosters and supporters Saturday morning saying recent reports outlining an abusive environment in the school’s football program “are not reflective of the culture we seek to build here” and that he is committed to “swiftly examining and addressing any reports brought to our attention.”
Athletic department officials had previously announced Friday evening that multiple members of the athletics staff had been placed on administrative leave but declined to identify the employees. The team’s head coach DJ Durkin was in attendance at the team’s practice on Friday. In his letter, Evans did not specifically cite Durkin or make any reference to the head coach’s future with the program.
Durkin was present at the team’s practice Saturday morning in College Park, according to a person familiar with the situation. Evans was on-hand and met with the team prior to practice, that person said, though the nature of the meeting was not immediately clear.
ESPN reported Saturday that at least three employees have been placed on leave: Rick Court, the team’s strength and conditioning coach, and two members of the training staff, Wes Robinson and Steve Nordwall.
School officials have repeatedly said they will speak in greater detail following an external review of the death of football player Jordan McNair. The 19-year old died June 13 after suffering heatstroke at a team workout May 29. An attorney for the family has said that a lawsuit is likely.
The school has contracted with Walters Inc., an athletic training consulting firm, to review the circumstances surrounding McNair’s death. While that review isn’t expected to conclude until Sept. 15, the school was facing mounting pressure to act quickly in the wake of news reports that outlined a toxic football culture in College Park, which included regular instances of bullying, disparagement, and verbal and emotional abuse.
“There was just constant degrading of players,” one former player told The Post on Friday evening, “and that was the culture they brought to the program, and they thought it would toughen us up.”
ESPN published a lengthy report on Friday evening, citing current and former players and staff members who described an “environment based on fear and humiliation.” In his letter Saturday morning, Evans called the allegations “troubling,” but did not refute or address anything specifically in the report. Evans took over the athletics department’s top post in June, after serving as athletics director on an interim basis since last November.
The Terps football program was bracing for publication of the ESPN report, closing Friday’s practice to reporters and sending a letter to parents of Maryland players, signed by Durkin. The coach told the parents, “our priority every day is the safety along with the academic, personal and athletic development of your sons,” according to the Baltimore Sun. “During this time of healing, our focus needs to be on each other and unity within our program.”
Reaction was swift and loud on social media Friday night. Maryland Delegate Brooke Lierman, a civil rights attorney from Baltimore, has called for the coaches to resign and said university administrators need to move quickly to suspend those involved.
“I am outraged that this egregious coaching behavior existed, that it lasted so long and that it led to the death of a young man,” she said. “The lack of oversight is incredibly troubling. That this was allowed to persist and that any coaches think this behavior is acceptable is incredibly disturbing.
“Numerous people must have known this was going on,” she continued. “This type of behavior has no place in any educational institution in the state of Maryland.”
“Whenever you have a player die, you really have to get to the bottom of it,” said Tom McMillan, the former Terps basketball star who served three terms in Congress.”