Betsy Blaney of the ASSOCIATED PRESS has details on a memo that Texas Tech university President Guy Bailey sent to Tech Chancellor Kent Hance three days before Mike Leach’s firing that recommended the “James case be closed” and Leach keep his job.
Testimony from Hance and the attorney also confirmed that university President Guy Bailey penned a memo Dec. 27 to Hance recommending that Leach “be issued a letter of reprimand” and that the James case be closed.
So why was Leach fired?
When Craig James found out about Bailey’s recommendation, he contacted Chancellor Hance to demand Leach be dismissed.
Hance then contacted two members of the Texas Tech Board of Regents and told them of James’ message recommending the ouster. After those two members of the Board of Regents subsequently recommended to the school that Leach be fired, the coach was dismissed on Dec. 30. (Despite Hance admitting under oath last week that it is against school policy for the Board of Regents to have any power in such school personnel matters.)
Pretty serious stuff. So how do we absolutely know that all that happened?
Leach’s legal team has confirmed to Alex Ybarra of the Lubbock’s DAILY TOREADOR that “it has a series of text messages and e-mails Craig James sent to the Board of Regents and to Hance” as evidence.
Leach attorney Ted Liggett said of that evidence to Lubbock’s FOX 34, “In fact, at one point there is communication wherein he (James) wanted him (Leach) fired and he wanted him to apologize too.”
Those communications, as they pertain to all Texas Tech-affiliated personnel, are public information in the state of Texas and can be freely obtained from the school by anyone.
I’ve heard a lot of people characterize Craig James’ alleged involvement in the firing of Mike Leach as a case of, “he said vs. he said“. But as much of the communications between James and Tech officials are public record in the state of Texas, it appears that there’s hard evidence to indicate James’ undue influence in Leach’s dismissal.
12:22 pm on March 15th, 2010
How can the Pony go back to the Worldwide Leader, his credibility is shot. Dude is also a program killer, SMU and now Texas Tech.
12:41 pm on March 15th, 2010
Seriously. How does ESPN continue to employ this guy? Craig James should be fired.
12:57 pm on March 15th, 2010
The guy is a complete moron. But I can’t fully blame james, why were all the tech officials afraid of him? They deserve just as much blame for not growing a pair and telling james to fuck off. They lost their best coach in school history over a non starting, below average WR.
1:11 pm on March 15th, 2010
The question is - how does the fact that the board of regents is a bunch of sissies cause James to be civilly liable? What undue influence could he have over them? If he is throwing the weight of ESPN around he should be fired; otherwise the board should have sacked up and respectfully told James as a concerned parent that they would watch Leach more closely.
1:12 pm on March 15th, 2010
Another thing- Way to go Whatsyerface James, you just killed your dad’s career for being a bitch
1:48 pm on March 15th, 2010
The issue isn’t whether or not James is civilly liable. As far as I’m aware, he’s not a party to Leach’s lawsuit against his former employer, although his actions leading to Texas Tech’s firing Leach are set out in detail. James might be liable for some kind of tortious interference with contractual relationship, or something of the sort, but I believe the defendants in Leach’s case as it now stands are only Texas Tech and maybe its Regents. The legal significance of James’s actions as they apply to the present lawsuit, are that it’s beginning to look more and more as if Tech, scared s***less of James, acted improperly and failed to accord Leach due process prior to dismissing him. Also, looking at his employment contract with Tech, I don’t see any clause allowing termination because a parent threatened a lawsuit. Tech may be in deep doo-doo.
2:16 pm on March 15th, 2010
Actually there were a few Regents who wanted to get rid of Leach as he wasn’t one of the “good old boys”. These regents are from Dallas; James lives in Dallas. You don’t think that they didn’t get together on this at some point? The Regents hold the real power at Tech as they have the big time donors in their pockets. It’s easy to blame Bailey, Hance and Meyers but really the Regents wanted him gone and they flexed their muscles to get it done; Chancellor and President didn’t have the stones to stand up to them…
2:24 pm on March 15th, 2010
the only people responsible for firing leach are the tech officials…period…the rest is minor
2:33 pm on March 15th, 2010
Craig James son is pussy and he’s dad backed him up. Another spoiled richkid who when had to go to work went home and cried to Daddy. all leach did was the right thing. I hope he takes TT for everypenny he’s worth and then files a civil suit against James to get him fired from ESPN and take whatever money he has left. I see parents hijacking teams and youth leagues starting at age six either because god tells them they can or too much money makes them think they are untouchable! Go COACH LEACH!
2:39 pm on March 15th, 2010
Brooks, you were pretty quick to call for Kornheisers job when he commented on her appearance. Why is it you’re not emailing and calling ESPN for James to be fired? Obviously a conflict of interest related to his job (college football) and not just fashion. Lets not be hypocritical. James is arrogant and egotistical and stepped over the line. Fair is fair Brooks.
2:58 pm on March 15th, 2010
To all you idiots who claim Craig James “killed SMU’s football program,” get your facts straight. There has never been any implication whatsoever that James received any benefits from SMU. In fact, he didn’t need any enticements to attend SMU, because he went there in order to be with his high school sweetheart, who was dead set on going there because her older sister went there. P-whipped, yes. Paid off, no.
3:01 pm on March 15th, 2010
Maybe it was Leach’s fault? At least a little bit? Last time I talked to a doctor, locking in a shed was not the prescribed treatment for a concussion.
5:06 pm on March 15th, 2010
I never liked “Pony.” As this case is proving, he’s an arogant SOB who thinks his dung does not stink.
Kiss that kushy espn job Good-Bye!
5:52 pm on March 15th, 2010
so…um, has ESPN reported any of these new findings?
5:54 pm on March 15th, 2010
Cracks are now appearing in the “locking in a shed” story, too. See Brooks’s March 14, 2010 posting on that issue.
6:58 pm on March 15th, 2010
@Tigerfan he was never “locked in a shed”, that was disproved long ago. Please get your facts straight before you make yourself seem like an idiot.
7:25 pm on March 15th, 2010
Leach put texas tech on the map… Leach was out of control and destined to get the college sued. A good ad would have got him some counciling and found a way to keep him. Big time mistake!!
7:50 pm on March 15th, 2010
i am sure espn will bide their time w/ james until they have a good reason to let him go. hopefully both of them will be jobless soon. i’d assume no one would want to touch either of them after all this mess.
10:29 pm on March 15th, 2010
Mike Leach won 2 more games per year than Dykes. He also blamed losses on the “fat little girlfriends” of players. He’s weird and insubordinate. If he had simply apologized for punishing a concussed player he would not have been fired. I would not want someone like him coaching my sons.
11:01 pm on March 15th, 2010
@Rick, you are the epitome of a Craig James style type dad. With parents like you, coaches cant even yell at their players without having an investigation done. I hope your kids never make it into a D1 program because theyd probably end up ruining because their pussified dad told them that “everybody is a winner at the end of the day so just try”. Oh and by the way, he didn’t punish the James kid for having a concussion, he was mad at him because instead of showing up to practice with athletic clothing on, he showed up in regular clothes and with an arrogant, douchey attitude and didn’t want to do his treatment.
12:08 am on March 16th, 2010
Now Tuber will win 2 games less than Leach or Dykes per season with his “Defensive style”, and please all the Soccer Dads like Rich out there. Get a book ready for Saturday afternoons this fall, it will be just as exciting as watching Tech.
6:12 am on March 16th, 2010
All boils down to this:
1. Famous dad has puss kid.
2. Puss kid does not want to produce on coach’s terms.
3. Coach has puss kid’s ass .
4. Puss kid cries to famous dad.
5. Famous dad leans on Univ. officials to fire coach.
6. Univ. officials pussed out and fired coach.
If this is not a case of wrongful discharge then there has never been one.
I hope not, but probably so, Leach could be done in coaching D-1 over this. But I hope he wins just one more!
D
7:25 am on March 16th, 2010
More should be looked in to the business interests shared by Hance and James. As I undertand it Hance brought James into a business venture about two years ago. Why is this part of the story being ignored? Wouldn’t this be a conflict of interest?
9:14 am on March 16th, 2010
@ ‘92 Mustang,
You live in a dream world.
10:38 am on March 16th, 2010
Adam James; Waaaaa, waaaaa, I want my mommy, I want my daddy
Daddy; Come here, son, cry on daddy’s shoulder, it’s going to be alright, daddy’s always going to be there to change your diapers. There, there, Baby Adam….daddy’s going to make things right for you
11:40 am on March 16th, 2010
Was TT negotiating at the time with ESPN for TV games, etc? Did they think that by ticking off James they might not get a contract, etc? $$$ drives a lot of things - especially football programs.
6:54 am on March 19th, 2010
follow the rich white guy. thats who has the power. you really think these presidents and athletic directors have power? think again. the world we live in is all about connections. its obvious that craig james knew some big wigs.
1:39 pm on March 19th, 2010
As I understand it, the Board of Regents were the guys mainly responsible for Leach’s firing, along with James, because Leach was a loose cannon and not part of the good ol boys club. So Tech administration wilted under pressure cause the Board has the big donor support, yet I have heard that Tech is losing a lot of donor support because they fired Leach. So either the Board did not really have the big support and were only bluffing, or the administration was only worried about their own jobs and did not care about the donors.
12:07 am on March 21st, 2010
I regret that Coach Leach was fired because of his ability to motivate the young men. He had to be tough or the lazy ones would take over and ruin the team. He should have been called to task if he mistreated James, but don’t believe he deserved to be fired. If the court proves he is in the right I hope TT has to pay him everything he has coming and some to boot. I hope it is proved in court that other heads need to roll…from TT and ESPN.