Northwestern fires baseball coach amid misconduct allegations days after football coach dismissed over hazing scandal
Northwestern baseball coach Jim Foster was fired Thursday amid allegations of misconduct, three days after football coach Pat Fitzgerald was dismissed because of a hazing scandal.
Foster spent just one season as the Wildcats' coach. The move was announced in a brief statement from athletic director Derrick Gragg.
"Nothing will ever be more important to Northwestern than providing its students a place that allows them to develop in the classroom, in the community, and in competition at the absolute highest level, and building a culture which allows our staff to thrive," Gragg said.
"This has been an ongoing situation and many factors were considered before reaching this resolution. As the director of athletics, I take ownership of our head coaching hires and we will share our next steps as they unfold."
The Chicago Tribune and WSCR-AM reported this week that Foster led a toxic culture and that his bullying and verbally abusive behavior prompted a human resources investigation by the university.
Multiple assistants left after one year, and at least 15 players entered the transfer portal, CBS Chicago reported, CBS Chicago reported.
Northwestern went 10-40 under Foster. Assistant Brian Anderson, a former major leaguer who won a World Series ring with the Chicago White Sox in 2005, will take over as interim coach.
Earlier this week, Fitzgerald was fired after a university investigation found allegations of hazing by 11 current or former players, including "forced participation, nudity and sexualized acts of a degrading nature," Northwestern President Michael Schill wrote.
In one alleged ritual known as "running," he says a younger player would be restrained by a group of eight to 10 older players while they dry humped him in a dark locker room.
"Rubbing your genitals on another person's body, I mean, that's coercion. That's predatory behavior," Ramon Diaz Jr., who was an offensive lineman for Northwestern from 2005 to 2009, told CBS News.
Fitzgerald has maintained he was unaware of the hazing.