With just a month before fall football camp begins, Utah State appears to be considering a head coaching change.
ESPN's Pete Thamel reported Tuesday morning that Aggies head coach Blake Anderson has been placed on administrative leave and is unlikely to return to college. Defensive coordinator Nate Dreiling has been named interim coach at Utah State.
While the initial report did not provide details about why Anderson has been placed on administrative leave and will likely be fired as the team's head coach, Utah State's athletic program and university have been rocked by recent scandals.
Anderson was the subject of a lawsuit from a former Utah State player in 2022. Patrick Maddox, who played linebacker for the Aggies from 2019 to 2021, claimed Anderson and teammates retaliated against him after he was recorded making derogatory comments about a sexual assault victim. Maddox filed a lawsuit against Anderson and Utah State in federal court in October 2022 and later settled the lawsuit for $150,000 from the university.
During a team meeting, Maddox recorded comments from Utah Police Chief Earl Morris, who told players to be careful about engaging in sexual relations with members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because they might ultimately claim the acts were non-consensual. Anderson said that “being a victim of sexual assault has never been more glamorized” and argued that football players could be targets of such accusations.
Anderson and Morris both apologized for their comments after the recordings were made public. Morris resigned, but Anderson kept his job. In December 2021, Anderson was given a contract extension through 2027.
Maddox alleged that Anderson said his comments would hurt his standing at Logan because he is a Christian and Utah has a large population of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. According to Maddox's lawsuit, Anderson demanded that he apologize to his teammates for recording the meeting, saying that it would create “an extremely awkward atmosphere in the locker room” otherwise. Maddox apologized to the team, but then had his locker ransacked and was told his scholarship would not be renewed for the 2022 season. He left the team in February 2022.
Shortly after Maddox's lawsuit was filed, Utah State University athletic director John Hartwell resigned after evidence of the vulgar jokes circulated online. Utah State University President Noel Cockett resigned shortly thereafter. These moves came after the university was embroiled in allegations over its improper handling of sexual assault reports, including incidents involving the football team. Utah State was investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice, which found that of more than 200 reports of sexual harassment and assault from 2013 to 2018, fewer than 25 went through proper Title IX reporting protocols.
In 2021, Utah State University student Kaytriana Flint filed a lawsuit alleging she was raped by a member of the Aggies football team in 2019, before Anderson was hired. She claimed the school shielded the players and downplayed her case. Maddox was a friend of Flint's and recorded the audio to help her case. According to KUTV, three Utah State football players have been arrested for sexual assault since 2021, including one from last season.
Anderson's current situation may be unrelated to his past issues at Utah State, but it could also be a continuation of a trend of issues at the university. Anderson was hired by Utah State prior to the 2021 season and led the Aggies to the largest turnaround in FBS history. After taking over a team that was 1-5 the year before, Anderson led Utah State to an 11-3 record and a Mountain West title in his debut season in 2021. The team finished 24th in the final AP Top 25 poll. The Aggies have had back-to-back 6-7 seasons and bowl appearances. Anderson has a 40-23 record in three seasons at Utah State and a 74-54 record as an FBS head coach, including seven seasons at Arkansas State. He has led the team to nine bowl games in 10 seasons.
Anderson announced the birth of his son just three days ago, on June 29. Anderson has experienced some difficult family events in recent years, including the death of his wife, Wendy, from cancer in August 2019. His 21-year-old son, Cason, committed suicide in February 2022, and since then, Anderson has become an active advocate for mental health services.
Utah State University announced that afternoon that it had notified Blake Anderson that his employment contract would be terminated due to actions taken in the spring of 2023.
“These actions violate both his employment contract and university policies,” Utah State University said in a statement. “Under his employment contract, Coach Anderson must respond within 14 days. This decision was made following a thorough external investigation into alleged violations of university policies implementing Title IX. Title IX requires complete and timely reporting of allegations of sexual misconduct, including domestic violence, and prohibits employees from investigating allegations of sexual misconduct on their own.”
The school said it cannot release any additional information until all opportunities for response or appeal have been exhausted – a minimum of 14 days.
“As leaders, we have a responsibility to ensure that allegations of violations of USU's rules are investigated,” Utah State University President Elizabeth Cantwell and athletic director Diana Sabaw said in a news release. “Today's actions are the result of a thorough external investigation, and we believe the evidence demands immediate action. Our job is to fearlessly hold ourselves and others accountable for their actions and live the university's values for our students and community. While recognizing the impact these decisions have on our student-athletes and football program, we will continue to take the steps necessary to achieve a culture of respect, transparency and winning at Utah State.”
Associate athletic director Jerry Bovey and football director of player development Austin Albrecht were also fired for “violating university policy regarding reporting sexual assault and domestic violence and dereliction of duty.”
Utah State is scheduled to open the 2024 season at home against Robert Morris on Aug. 31.
