WSU coach Rolovich, four assistants fired for refusing coronavirus shot

SPOKANE, Wash. — Washington State fired head football coach Nick Rolovich and four assistants Monday for refusing a state mandate that employees get vaccinated against the coronavirus, making him the first major college coach to lose his job over vaccination status.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, had set a deadline of Monday for thousands of state employees, including the Cougars’ head coach, to be vaccinated. Rolovich applied for a religious exemption, which was denied Monday, WSU athletic director Pat Chun said.

Defensive coordinator Jake Dickert is the acting head coach. His first game in charge will be Saturday at home against BYU.

“This is a tough day for Washington State football,” Chun said at a news conference. “Nobody wants to be here.”

Also fired for refusing vaccination were assistant coaches Ricky Logo, John Richardson, Craig Stutzmann and Mark Weber. Chun said there might be no precedent for a team losing its head coach and so many assistants midseason.

“Our student-athletes are the biggest losers in this,” he said.

Rolovich, 42, was not immediately available for comment.

Rolovich, who attended Marin Catholic and CCSF, was the highest-paid state employee with an annual salary of more than $3 million in a contract that runs through 2025. He declined to specify his reasons for refusing the vaccine and was the only unvaccinated head coach in the Pac-12, wearing a mask during games.

Rolovich was fired for cause, which means the university does not have to honor the rest of his contract.

He was hired from Hawaii two years ago, leading WSU to a 1-3 record in the Pac-12 in the shortened 2020 season. WSU (4-3, 3-2 Pac-12) has won three straight, including a 34-31 win over Stanford on Saturday. His players doused him with sports drink afterward, knowing it could be his last game.

Chun said he met with Rolovich over several months but could not change the head coach’s mind. “He was resolute in his stance,” Chun said.

Rolovich needed to prove a sincerely held religious belief that prevented him from getting vaccinated in his exemption application. The application was put before a committee that reviewed requests without knowing applicants’ names.