Art Briles is set to take over as the new head coach at Division II Eastern New Mexico, according to reports on Sunday.
Briles, 69, hasn’t coached in college football since 2016. He was fired from Baylor after a review of the school’s handling of sexual assault allegations made against multiple football players.
That investigation has resulted in backlash whenever teams have tried to hire Briles. Grambling State caused an uproar in 2022 when the school tried to bring in Briles as its offensive coordinator, resulting in him withdrawing his name from consideration so as not to be a distraction. The CFL’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats faced a similar scenario in 2017, forcing them to rescind an offer to Briles the same day it was made.
Briles took accountability months after his firing in an interview with ESPN for what occurred under his watch.
“I understand that I made some mistakes, and for that, I’m sorry,” he said. “But I’m not trying to plead for people’s sympathy. I’m just stating that, ‘Hey, I made some mistakes. I was wrong. I’m sorry. I’m going to learn. I’m going to do better.’ ”
A federal judge ruled in 2023 that Briles wasn’t negligent in a case regarding a Baylor student who said she was physically assaulted by one of the school’s football players in 2014. Briles eventually received a $15.1 million settlement from Baylor after being fired with eight years left on his contract.
The Texas native coached in the Italian Football League and at a Texas high school following his dismissal from Baylor, where he went 65-37 over eight seasons and 3-3 in bowl games from 2008-15. Briles also went 34-28 across five campaigns in 2003-07 with Houston, where Eastern New Mexico athletic director Kevin Fite served as associate athletic director for compliance and eligibility during Briles’ tenure.
