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ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith went off on Hue Jackson hiring Art Briles as his offensive coordinator at Grambling State University.
On First Take, Smith asked why the 56-year-old head coach would hire Briles after commenting on the lack of chances for black coaches.
“How in God's name could you make this call at an HBCU?" Smith said. "After the battles you've been known to fight as recently as two weeks earlier on national television on SportsCenter, lamenting the lack of opportunities for black coaches. You get it and this is what you do. There is no getting around that. And Hue Jackson, I don't want anybody to think that he is anything less than a good man just because you’re stubborn or hard-headed or truculent because you believe what you're doing is right doesn't make you a bad person by any stretch of the imagination. But to make this decision. It will live in infamy that Hue Jackson made this call, to begin with.”
Jackson was a head coach in the NFL for four seasons: one with the then-Oakland Raiders and three with the Cleveland Browns.
He finished with an 8-8 record with the Raiders and a 3-36-1 mark with the Browns, including an 0-16 record in the 2017 season.
Before becoming an NFL head coach, he was an offensive coordinator with Washington (2003), Atlanta Falcons (2007), Raiders (2011), Cincinnati Bengals (2014-2015), and Browns (2017).
After spending one season at the HBCU Tennessee State University as their offensive coordinator last year, he was hired by Grambling State as their head coach. However, the hiring of Briles as his offensive coordinator has caused a stir.
Hue Jackson defended hiring Art Briles
In a letter, the head coach chalked up the decision to three key factors: forgiveness, redemption, and enlightenment. The letter ended with what seemed to be a call not to find fault with or even talk about the topic for which he gave the following reason:
“People can and often do become re-traumatized and re-victimized by statements which may or may not be accurate.”
As the head coach at Baylor, Briles was accused of ignoring sexual misconduct committed by his players.
A lawsuit is still pending against the 66-year-old, asserting that he has legal responsibility to the victims of sexual misconduct due to his negligence in taking steps to correct a volatile situation.
After just four days on the job, Briles is no longer the offensive coordinator at Grambling as he resigned from the position.
