The Jacksonville Jaguars announced the hiring of former Iowa Hawkeyes strength coach Chris Doyle on Thursday, prompting a considerable backlash from the Fritz Pollard Alliance. The organization criticized the NFL team for hiring a coach who was accused of making racist remarks and belittling and bullying players during his time at Iowa. One day later, Doyle resigned from his new position.
“Chris Doyle came to us this evening to submit his resignation and we have accepted,” Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer and general manager Trent Baalke said in a statement. “Chris did not want to be a distraction to what we are building in Jacksonville. We are responsible for all aspects of our program and, in retrospect, should have given greater consideration to how his appointment may have affected all involved. We wish him the best as he moves forward in his career.”
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According to ESPN, there were multiple accusations made on social media by former Iowa players last year. Some said that Black and White players were held to different standards and that Black players were mistreated. Other accusations said that Doyle and other assistants made racist remarks and that Black players felt that they had to conform to specific ways of behavior. Though not all of the issues were related to race.
Former Iowa offensive lineman Jack Kallenberger said on social media that he retired from football in January 2019 after bullying related to a learning disability. He listed Doyle as one of the coaches that harassed him. The University of Iowa responded to these complaints and hired a Kansas City law firm to conduct an external investigation into the football program.
The university placed Doyle on administrative leave on June 6. Doyle defended himself at the time and said that he had never crossed the line of unethical behavior or bias based on race. “I do not make racist comments and I don’t tolerate people who do,” he said in a Twitter statement.
The university announced on June 14 that Doyle was no longer employed at Iowa. His tenure began in 1999 and ended in 2020. Iowa gave Doyle 15 months’ salary, an estimated $1.1 million, as well as benefits for him and his family for 15 months unless he found employment elsewhere.
“At a time when the NFL has failed to solve its problem with racial hiring practices, it is simply unacceptable to welcome Chris Doyle into the ranks of NFL coaches,” said Rod Graves, Fritz Pollard Alliance executive director. “Doyle’s departure from the University of Iowa reflected a tenure riddled with poor judgment and mistreatment of Black players. His conduct should be as disqualifying for the NFL as it was for the University of Iowa. Urban Meyer’s statement, ‘I’ve known Chris for close to 20 years’ reflects the good ol’ boy network that is precisely the reason there is such a disparity in employment opportunities for Black coaches.”
