Creighton men’s basketball coach Greg McDermott, who previously apologized for urging his players to “stay on the plantation” in a locker room talk after the game after a loss over the weekend, said Wednesday he offered the waiver for his comments.
McDermott told Creighton’s radio show before the 72-60 loss to No. 10 Villanova that he had a long meeting with the players on Sunday night and said he saw “pain in his face” and that he expected that “a mistake does not”. I do not define you “.
McDermott said he wanted to make sure the Bluejays wanted him to continue coaching and apologized for the “distraction I brought to this team for the choice I made.”
McDermott said the Bluejays, whose players wear “equality” on the back of the shirt, did not ask him to resign.
“Our guys wanted me to train and that’s my job,” McDermott said.
McDermott has been the coach of Creighton since 2010. McDermott, who is white, acknowledged that he said after a loss to Xavier on Saturday: “Guys, we need to stay together. We need both feet. I need everyone to stay in planting. I can’t have anyone coming out of the plantation. “
The coach added that he apologized directly to Creighton president Rev. Daniel Hendrickson and athletic director Bruce Rasmussen.
Creighton assistant coach Terrence Rencher, who is black, tweeted about McDermott’s words “deeply hurt.”
The school said any disciplinary action will remain confidential.
McDermott was on the sidelines and received one fist of all players except one while fleeing the track due to pre-match warm-ups.
McDermott’s racially insensitive comments overshadowed what was expected to be a fantastic showdown between the top two teams in the Big East. The Wildcats, on the other hand, advanced 19 points and secured their seventh regular-season title under coach Jay Wright in the past eight seasons.
The information from The Associated Press was used in this report.