Kansas State Fires Coach Who Said His Players Didn’t Even Deserve to Be on the Team After Blowout Loss

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Kansas State University fired its men’s basketball coach Sunday after he publicly trashed his players over a blowout loss last week.

Last Wednesday, Kansas State lost 91-62 to Cincinnati at home. It was the team’s second straight home loss of more than 25 points, and head coach Jerome Tang was understandably frustrated by the team’s recent woes. Tang said he was “pissed” and “embarrassed” for the university, and also claimed that many of the players on the team would not be returning next year.

“These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform,” the coach said in the post-game press conference. “There will be very few of them in it next year.”

On Sunday evening, ESPN’s Pete Thamel received word that Tang had been fired.

Additional reporting from Thamel appeared to suggest that the post-game outburst played a role in K-State’s decision to fire the. In a follow-up tweet, Thamel explained:

Per ESPN sources, Kansas State is firing Jerome Tang for cause. They’ve informed him of this formally tonight. The basis for the for cause firing is language in his contract that references any activity that brings “public disrepute, embarrassment, ridicule” to Kansas State.

Athletic director Gene Taylor later confirmed in a university statement that Tang was indeed fired over his comments. The statement read:

“This was a decision that was made in the best interest of our university and men’s basketball program,” Taylor said. “Recent public comments and conduct, in addition to the program’s overall direction, have not aligned with K-State’s standards for supporting student-athletes and representing the university. We wish Coach Tang and his family all the best moving forward.”

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