
Former Stanford coach Troy Taylor denied wrongdoing and claimed the university fired him without cause in his first statement since being terminated by general manager Andrew Luck on March 25. And Stanford apparently paid him every dollar to leave.
Taylor was fired following an ESPN report revealing a pair of investigations into his mistreatment of female staffers, both of which took place before the 2024 season. According to reports, Luck was aware of the investigations when he took over as general manager earlier this year.
“The media’s recent portrayal of me is unfair, wrong and contrary to my professional track record and the person I am and have always been,” Taylor said in the statement. “The truth is that Stanford terminated me without cause and, as a result, is honoring the original payment terms of my contract.”
More than 20 former and current female staffers cooperated with investigators, per documents obtained by ESPN. One of the investigators called Taylor’s treatment towards a compliance officer “inappropriate, discriminatory on the basis of her sex,” and that Taylor sought “her removal from her assigned duties” for bringing up minor Level III violations.
In his statement, Taylor claimed that he willingly subjected himself to both investigations, the first of which concluded in 2023 that he “did not act unfairly.” After the second investigation, resolved in July 2024, he was asked to change his tone and surrendered a raise that he had agreed to in January 2024.
“I accepted Stanford’s demand last summer for the sake of the team,” Taylor said. “I was not shown the private and confidential second report that was also improperly disclosed to ESPN recently. I’ve not been the subject of any other complaints or investigations since this investigation ended last summer.”
The Cardinal posted consecutive 3-9 campaigns under Taylor, whose removal was the first known instance of a general manager (Luck) making the decision to fire the coach instead of an athletic director.
This news was originally published on this post .
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