High School Football Coach Says He Was Fired For Having Too Many Black Players On The Team

The coach of a New Jersey football team says he is being fired for having too many black players on the team.

On Friday, administrators at Camden Catholic, a high school in Cherry Hill, told history teacher Nick Strom he wouldn’t be retained for next year. They also told Strom to resign as football and golf coach. Strom then told the that school president Mary Whipkey and principal Heather Crisci didn’t like the fact he had lots of black players on the team:

“From day one, the administration told me they did not approve of the ratio of black to white students.” Strom estimated the topic of race came up “10 to 20 times” with Whipkey since he was hired as football coach in 2013.

“When I’d have a list of potential freshmen, the first question I’d be asked is if they were white or black,” he said. “I was confused about why the question was, ‘How can we get more white players in the program or on the field?’”

Whipkey told the newspaper the allegations aren’t true. The school released a statement to the press about the coach’s allegations:

We do not comment on personnel matters, but it has come to our attention that he has chosen to muddy the reasons for his dismissal with baseless accusations against the school and administration. Any concern about racism or racial insensitivity is taken seriously and investigated fully.

Some students and parents protested his firing; the coach has won at least eight games every season he’s been Camden Catholic’s coach. CBS 3 reports the coach was fired—after he refused to resign—just one day before he was about to get tenure.

[ Courier Post]