ASU names interim coach to replace suspended Cole; players sue

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Posted 4:30AM on Tuesday, August 5, 2003

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA - University of Memphis assistant coach Charles Coe III was named interim football coach at Alabama State on Monday, setting off a groundswell of resistance from players, who are taking legal action to keep L.C. Cole as their coach. Alabama State President Joe Lee announced the coaching change Monday, saying an eight-month internal investigation revealed several violations in the football program. Cole along with his brother, assistant coach Johnnie Cole, and assistant coach Richard Freeman were suspended with pay on Friday. An administrative process is underway to remove all three from the university, Lee said. The report ASU submitted to the NCAA on July 22 alleges that Cole played ineligible players and paid for strippers to entertain recruits and that assistant coaches had improper contact with potential recruits. The violations will result in the school forfeiting ``a substantial amount of games,'' including the 2001 Southwestern Athletic Conference eastern division championship, and paying fines, Lee said. ``The findings are an embarrassment to the university,'' Lee said. Cole has denied those allegations. He admitted Monday to minor infractions, including one instance where Johnnie Cole rode back on the same airplane some ASU recruits were on, which is a violation. But the violations did not merit the punishment handed down, Cole said. In response to the coaching change, as many as 17 Alabama State players are suing the university, attorney Julian McPhillips said Monday. The lawsuit alleges breach of implied contract and civil fraud and seeks an emergency injunction to lift Cole's suspension. ``We are going to fight this tooth-and-nail with everything we've got,'' said McPhillips. He also is representing Cole in a lawsuit against a former assistant coach who first brought forth the allegations. The players' lawsuit says they understand that a school has a right to fire a coach for many reasons, but the allegations against Cole and his assistants are completely false. ``The whole team is in shock,'' redshirt sophomore linebacker Martravis Gary said. ``This is a big turning point for this university.'' Though many players had threatened to transfer if Cole was fired, all of those who spoke Monday said they will play for the Hornets in 2003. Those players will face long odds for the 2003 season. The players and new coaching staff have little time to install a new system before the season opener Aug. 30 against Florida A&M in Detroit. ``The most important thing right now is our players,'' Coe said after his announcement as the new coach. ``It's a difficult time for them.'' ``Players are attached to coaches, but life goes on,'' he said. ``We're going to put this behind us and make sure it never happens again.'' Coe, who has also previously coached at Iowa, Cincinnati, Louisville, Missouri, Kansas State, Tennessee and Pittsburgh, was scheduled to meet with the players Monday evening. ``I am convinced he will lead a winning season for ASU's football program that is marked by dignity and professionalism,'' Lee said. Cole said he warned then-President William Harris about problems with the university's compliance department in 2000, when the team allegedly allowed four ineligible players to practice. In response on Monday, Lee reassigned two administrators who handled compliance and eligibility issues for football players. The school plans to hire a full-time compliance officer, replacing Robert Whitfield, who handled compliance issues in addition to his professorship at the school, Lee said. Lee also said that athletic director Richard Cosby is still under contract at Alabama State, and reports that he was leaving for Stillman College are untrue. John Ivery, who handled certification of athletes, also has been reassigned within the university. Critics of the university have called the investigation a ``witch hunt,'' and believe Cole was unfairly targeted. Lee denied those accusations, saying the school was simply following up on credible allegations made by a former assistant coach. Cole said Monday the investigation has been ``an assassination of my character, my brother's character and Richard Freeman's character.'' He said his push for a new stadium, a new weight room and changes to his contract ultimately led to his removal. ``If I didn't speak out about those things, I'd still be the coach,'' he said.