Police handcuffed and escorted Tuskegee basketball coach Benjy Taylor off the court after a loss to Morehouse on Saturday, Jan. 31, following a Division II HBCU game.
According to HBCU GameDay, Taylor was attempting to ensure conference-mandated security protocols were followed after Morehouse’s 77-69 win over the Golden Tigers in Atlanta. Football players from Morehouse intermingled with players during the postgame handshake, which is not allowed.
REQUIRED READING: March Madness bracketology: Big Ten leads NCAA basketball projection, but one team is slipping
According to Tuskegee athletic director Reginald Ruffin, Taylor asked security to enforce the conference rules and remove the football players from the handshake line.
“We have security measures for our protection of our officials, our student-athlete coaches and spectators,” Ruffin told HBCU Gameday. He said those measures follow a protocol “mandated by the conference office” and used “at all levels across member institutions.”
However, officers handcuffed Taylor instead, claiming Taylor was “very aggressive” − which Ruffin refuted.
“I am at a loss for words and I am upset about how I was violated and treated today,” Taylor said in a statement to Jeff Goodman of the Field of 68. “For my players, my family and people of Tuskegee to witness that is heartbreaking for me. I was simply trying to get the football team out of the handshake line as they were following right behind me and the team yelling obscenities! It was a very dangerous situation.”
Shortly after being handcuffed, Taylor was released and was able to travel with the team. He has been the head coach for the Golden Tigers since 2019, according to the school’s website.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tuskegee basketball coach Benjy Taylor escorted off court in handcuffs
Read the full article here