Only in the liberal northeast would this comment spark outrage.
A newly hired assistant football coach has resigned his position at the University of Connecticut one month after igniting controversy with a comment he made about keeping Jesus Christ at the center of his team’s huddle.
The university confirmed coach Ernest Jones’ departure in a statement to TheBlaze Monday, but declined to give a reason for the decision. Jones only started at the university in January.
“University of Connecticut assistant football coach Ernest T. Jones has resigned his position at UConn effective immediately,” the statement said. “The University or the Division of Athletics will have no further comment on the matter as it is personnel related.”
As: WFSB-TV reported, Jones made headlines after saying that it was important for players to understand that “Jesus Christ should be in the center of our huddle.” His comments were made during an interview with The Hartford Courant newspaper. Jones’ comments prompted university president Susan Herbst to: issue a statement: to the Courant, saying staff members at the public university must not take sides on the theological front.
“It should go without saying that our employees cannot appear to endorse or advocate for a particular religion or spiritual philosophy as part of their work at the university, or in their interactions with our students,” she said. “This applies to work-related activity anywhere on or off campus, including on the football field.”