Illinois fires coach Tim Beckman over player treatment: 6 things to know
Illinois announced Friday that it has fired coach Tim Beckman. Here are six things to know about his departure and where the Illini will go from here.
By
Tom Fornelli
•
3 min read
The 2015 season has not even begun yet, but it appears we have our first fired coach.
Illinois announced on Friday afternoon that it has fired coach Tim Beckman ahead of its first game.
Here's what you need to know about what went into Illinois' decision, and where the program will go from here.
1. The decision was made following preliminary results of an external review into allegations involving the football program. Illinois athletic director Mike Thomas said the decision to fire Beckman came after he received preliminary information from an investigation into the football program. The investigation of Beckman and the Illinois football program -- as well as other Illinois athletic programs -- came following allegations of mistreatment by former players.
“The preliminary information external reviewers shared with me does not reflect our values or our commitment to the welfare of our student-athletes, and I’ve chosen to act accordingly,” said Illinois athletic director Mike Thomas in a release. “During the review, we have asked people not to rush to judgment, but I now have enough information to make this decision in assessing the status and direction of the football program.”
2. The information received alleged that Beckman pressured players to play through their injuries. Thomas said that, during a briefing with external reviewers, he learned of efforts on Beckman's part to "deter injury reporting and influence medical decisions that pressured players to avoid or postpone medical treatment and continue playing despite injuries."
“Both of those findings are unsettling violations of University policy and practice and do not reflect the culture that we wish to create in athletic programs for our young people,” Thomas said. “I expect my coaches to protect players and foster their success on and off the field.”
3. Offensive coordinator Bill Cubit will take over as interim head coach. Cubit came to Illinois for the 2013 season and took over the offense. Before joining Illinois, though, Cubit had plenty of experience running his own program. He was the head coach at Western Michigan from 2005-17, going 51-47 in eight seasons. Cubit will receive a $400,000 raise ($100,000 per month) now that he's been promoted to interim head coach.
4. Beckman won't receive the money he's owed on his contract. Due to the specific reasons for Beckman's dismissal, he will not receive the $3.1 million remaining on his contract, nor will he receive the $743,000 buyout for his contract.
5. He may have survived had his teams performed better. While Thomas and Illinois certainly have reasons to fire Beckman, you can't help but think he'd have been extended a longer leash if he hadn't gone 12-25 over three seasons, 4-20 in conference play.
6. Don't expect Illinois to find a replacement soon: Even though Illinois hasn't had a lot of success in recent years, it will still be an attractive job to somebody simply because it's a Big Ten gig, and Illinois plays in the easier West Division. That said, don't expect the Illini to find Beckman's replacement any time soon.
The biggest reason for this is because Thomas is in hot water himself. He's the one who hired Beckman, and as mentioned above, and Illinois' football isn't the only athletic program at the school dealing with problems right now. There's a very good chance that Thomas could find himself out of a job in the coming weeks or months, so the person who hires the next Illinois football coach might not be an Illinois employee yet.
Beckman released a statement defending his actions at Illinois on Friday evening that you can read here.
