Barry Switzer is widely considered the greatest football coach in Oklahoma University’s history. Switzer coached the Sooners to three national titles between 1973 and 1988, and he won 157 games with the program overall.
On Tuesday, however, Switzer raised some major eyebrows by offering comments that many saw as too lenient towards the SAE fraternity brothers who engaged in a horribly racist chant on video last week.
“It hurts me because I’ve got a vested interest in this,” Switzer said, to the local affiliate KWTV and transcribed by USA Today’s For The Win. “As I said I’m an SAE and I know the kids in this house, I spend some time over here and I know what they’re like. Hey, I wouldn’t put up with that crap either and they don’t either and they don’t believe in it.
“I understand that supposedly they were called ‘bigots’ that lived in this house? That lived on this campus?” he continued. “I haven’t seen the interview, but if that happened and that occurred that’s no different than what those kids said on that bus. Throw a blanket over these kids that are here and say that they’re bigots? That’s unacceptable.”
Switzer later clarified his remarks after a firestorm ensued:
“While I support the University of Oklahoma and SAE’s decision to pursue swift actions, this situation is unfortunate for the many innocent people involved. As a long-time supporter of the University and member of the SAE chapter, I know the majority of our students don’t condone or participate in bigotry. These incidents are not a reflection of the true spirit of our campus.
"I hope that we can begin to heal the wounds by avoiding rhetoric that fuels the fire and instead spend more time thinking about how we can collectively create positive relationships and interactions among our campus family.”
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