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Albion College head men’s basketball coach Jody May has served a multigame suspension after players charged that he used a racial slur multiple times during a practice last month, The Detroit News reported.
Ten players declined to suit up for Saturday’s home game against Trine University, in large part because of inaction by the administration. Players want to continue the season without May as their head coach, according to notes kept by one upperclassman player—notes that have been endorsed by at least 16 players on the varsity roster, including those who played Saturday, multiple players told the News Saturday. Two players confirmed the details and allegations in the notes but did so anonymously.
The incident occurred during a practice Dec. 28, when May kicked a player out of practice for “jawing with another player,” according to the News. May said the player he kicked out of practice, who is Black, had used a racial slur during a recent practice. According to notes kept by a player, May, who is white, repeated that slur four times during that practice, in the context of quoting the player who was kicked out of practice. The majority of Albion’s roster is Black.
A spokeswoman for Albion said, “Albion College recently addressed an internal issue involving the men’s basketball team that stemmed from a practice session where our coach disciplined a student-athlete for using a racial epithet. When players questioned the coach about this matter after practice, the coach repeated what the student had said when he explained the discipline taken. The coach has since apologized to the team for this regrettable lapse in judgment. He has sat out several games and is undergoing sensitivity training.”
