Posted May 2, 200520 yr comment_1954267 Oklahoma coach removed after using racial slurs The Dallas Morning News NORMAN, Okla. - Oklahoma baseball coach Larry Cochell was removed from his position indefinitely Friday after school officials learned that he used racially derogatory language during two separate interviews with ESPN announcers. OU athletic director Joe Castiglione issued a statement Friday night that Sunny Golloway will be the team's interim head coach until the matter is resolved. Cochell made the comments before Tuesday's game at Wichita State, according to ESPN announcers Gary Thorne and Kyle Peterson. Thorne said he was talking with Cochell before the game in the dugout. Cochell summoned Joseph Dunigan, a 19-year-old black athlete from Chicago, to the dugout and complimented the freshman outfielder on his schoolwork. After Dunigan walked away, Thorne said Cochell made a racial slur. According to the network, which first reported the incident on its 4 p.m. edition of SportsCenter, Cochell said: "There's no (racial epithet) in him." Cochell, who is white, was speaking with ESPN analyst Kyle Peterson sometime later before the game. The two began talking about Dunigan. ESPN reported that Cochell said to Peterson: "There are honkies and white people. And there are (racial epithet) and black people. Dunigan is a good black kid." Josh Krulewitz, ESPN's director of media relations, said both interviews were considered on-the-record because the announcers were gathering information to be used during the broadcast. However, Cochell was not on camera. OU labeled the encounters as "a private meeting." Thorne said he and Peterson did not know Cochell had made similar remarks until they were talking Thursday. The two announcers discussed the situation and then informed ESPN producers about what happened, Thorne said. "Because it was done in the course of doing our job for ESPN, we felt we had an obligation to tell people we were working with - the producers," Thorne said after broadcasting Friday's OU-Nebraska game on ESPNU. "They felt necessary back in Bristol (Conn.) to think about 'what do we do?' It just doesn't seem like the sort of thing you can condone." Dunigan told school officials Friday night that he preferred not to comment. Golloway said after Nebraska's 8-1 victory that he has never heard Cochell use that type of language. "No," Golloway said. "That's a simple no." OU senior Matt Bose said: "I've been here for four years, and I've never heard anything like that come out of his mouth. He's a very nice Christian man, and that's about all I've got to say about that." Cochell, who is 534-354-1 in 14-plus seasons at OU, ranks eighth in Division I in victories. His all-time record is 1,308-794-3 in 38-plus years. Under Cochell's leadership, the Sooners won the 1994 College World Series and the 1997 Big 12 tournament title. You know, this kind of ties into the AA discussion over in the other thread. This guy clearly thought there was nothing wrong with what he said. The fact that he said it to someone who works for ESPN makes it even more mind boggling.
May 2, 200520 yr comment_1954411 I like how it was a compliment to the player, somewhat of a backhanded compliment at least, and the guy winds up fired.
May 2, 200520 yr Author comment_1954482 Yeah, I bet lots of black folks would like to hear they're not niggers. Unless of course he was stealing Chris Rock's bit on niggas vs black people, which would make the story even more hilarious.
May 2, 200520 yr comment_1954639 For what its worth, I was not offended by the honkies line. I dunno. Part of me is kinda peeved that an ESPN reporter heard it and stooged the coach. Like ESPN is the moral compass of the sports world now.
May 2, 200520 yr Author comment_1954696 Yeah I kinda felt the same way, but for the coach to think it was acceptable to say that in front of a reporter speaks more about him than the reporter. *waits for the inevitable "OMG LIBERAL MEDIA forced him to quit" defense from the coach's supporters*
May 3, 200520 yr comment_1965013 Yeah, I bet lots of black folks would like to hear they're not niggers. Unless of course he was stealing Chris Rock's bit on niggas vs black people, which would make the story even more hilarious. That was probably the intention, IE saying that he was good kid, not a piece of shit. It was a really stupid thing to say though, he could have chosen his verbiage a little better to say the very least. OU athletic director Joe Castiglione This isn't he same guy who does radio announcing for the Red Sox is it?
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