Morgantown, West Virginia – The circumstances surrounding Vic Koenning’s dismissal are somewhat clouded and mysterious because, like always, West Virginia University refuses to be transparent in their actions.
What is most frustrating to fans is that Koenning’s actions on the surface do not seem to warrant a dismissal. From Kerry Martin’s social media messages, we know the following:
1.) Vic Koenning likely called him a “retard” during practice. 2.) Vic Koenning tried to push his religious beliefs on his players. 3.) Vic Koenning created a culture that his defensive players were unable to thrive in. 4.) Vic Koenning spoke out against the black lives matter protests.
To the average fan, these actions are not fireable offenses. Fans claim that “that’s football” and harken back to the days of old when coaches could say whatever the hell they wanted to their players.
But to be clear, Koenning’s actions were more than enough for him to be dismissed. You can’t call a player a “retard”, you can’t push your religious beliefs on players, you can create a negative culture but it’s not advisable, and you certainly can speak against protests but ultimately you shouldn’t when a large percentage of your players are black.
Why can’t West Virginia just be open and honest for once? Why all the shady, behind-closed-doors shit? Instead of the politically correct statements from Athletic Director Shane Lyons, Head Coach Neal Brown and Vic Koenning himself, why not just be real?
“We did a thorough investigation and here’s why we fired (even the phrase “mutually separated” is ridiculous!) Vic Koenning: “According to our investigation, Coach Koenning injected and pushed his own personal religious beliefs on our players and according to the separation of church and state, that is not allowed. As a state-run university, we cannot tolerate that and his dismissal was mandatory.”
None of this “it was in the best interest of our program”, none of this “we deeply care and respect” nonsense was necessary. This was a business matter, he violated rules and this had to be done.
This would be by far more easily digested and accepted from a fanbase that wants to believe and trust the university they love so dearly.
