USF Assistant Basketball Coach Let Go For Inappropriate Comments

TAMPA, FLA — An associate head coach with the University of South Florida’s men’s basketball program has been dismissed by the university after an investigation determined that he used “racially charged” comments that were directed at players, the school announced Tuesday.

Tom Herrion, who had been with the program since 2017, will not have his contract renewed following the independent view of the Brian Gregory’s program. In a news release, the school announced that Herrion had violated university policy by making inappropriate comments to players.

On Tuesday afternoon, Herrion's name and bio were no longer listed on the men's basketball coaching staff list.

The school also announced that there is no evidence that Gregory or his staff failed to address “a known racial problem” and that players believed that the program’s leadership has been proactive and effective in dealing with racial and social injustice issues.

The review found that Gregory was only made aware of one of the incidents involving Herrion, the school said in a news release. Gregory reported the incident to school administrators the day he became aware of the allegation, the school said Tuesday. The investigation determined that outside of Herrion’s conduct, the men’s basketball program does not have a hostile or problematic culture as it relates to the issue of race, the school said.

"It is highly disappointing that the review confirmed isolated actions involving Coach Herrion's interactions with student-athletes that are simply unacceptable," USF Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly said in the release.

The investigation, which was conducted by the law firm Lightfoot, Franklin and White, included 17 interviews with players, coaches, and current and former members of the basketball staff. The student newspaper, The Oracle, reported that the report indicated that there were four specific incidents involving Herrion that were investigated, including one during the 2018-19 season when Herrion reportedly told a player to “stop swinging on the rim like a monkey.”

The newspaper said that the incident was substantiated but that multiple players —including the one the comment was directed at — didn’t consider it to be “racial in nature.”

The newspaper also outlined three other incidents in which Herrion reportedly told a player this past season that he had “jailhouse braids” and another that occurred last season when he 53-year-old assistant coach made a comment about a player’s sweatshirt that supported historically Black colleges and universities and made a derogatory comment about the player.

The final incident reportedly took place this past season when Herrion reportedly told one of the players to move faster during a drill and reportedly said, he needed to run “like the police are chasing you.”

Nine players —all of whom are Black — announced at the end of this past season they were entering the transfer portal. However, despite the departures, Kelly said that he has confidence in Gregory’s ability to lead the program. USF finished last season with a 9-13 record.

"The review reaffirms my belief in Coach Gregory’s leadership of our program,” Kelly said. “Moving forward, our entire athletic department will continue to be dedicated to fostering an inclusive environment that allows every student-athlete to thrive."