It was a foregone conclusion that Chris Beard would be fired following his arrest on December 12, 2022 in connection with the alleged attack on his fiancée, Randy Trew. After a full account of the incident followed, in which Trew claimed that the Texas men’s basketball coach, a sophomore, “strangled me, threw me out of bed, bit me, bruised me all over my leg, threw me and went crazy.” later that day, logic dictated that he would leave before the night game against Rice.
Three weeks later — and six Longhorns games — the University of Texas fired Byrd after an indefinite suspension without pay. Texas Athletics Director Chris Del Conte wrote about the dismissal in a statement.
“It was a difficult situation that we worked hard on,” the statement said. “Today I informed Mr Bird of our decision to fire him immediately.”
During Byrd’s suspension, assistant coach Rodney Terry led the team to a 5-1 record. According to the UT statement, he will remain in this position until the end of the season.
University also issued a letterfollowing the announcement of Byrd’s dismissal, from UT’s vice president of legal affairs and contacting Byrd’s attorney, Perry Minton.
It, dated Thursday, January 5, said Byrd “does not understand the significance of the behavior he knows he has committed or subsequent events that interfere with his ability to effectively manage our program.”
Minton released a statement claiming Byrd was surprised by the firing, noting that he was “crushed by the news” and saying the former Texas coach was fired without Texas asking Byrd or Trew any questions about the incident.
“Why isn’t Chris Beard fired yet?”
If the stretched timeline in which Byrd stayed in Texas used to be confusing, it’s exacerbated by Beard’s apparent lack of remorse and self-awareness. For the past three weeks, many Texas fans – and those who dismiss the existence of the burnt orange – have been asking the same question: why so long?
Some were happy that Beard was fired but regretted the timing.
The prevailing view was that the university was either determining how to get out of the last five years of Byrd’s seven-year contract, or that Texas would find a way, despite calls to the contrary, to keep the coveted coach it had poached from Texas. Technology in 2021.
Other sensed a conspiracy in announcement delay, even though the transfer portal doesn’t quite work that way.
Texas’ word of December 12 – his only word, it should be said – was that he was conducting an internal investigation into the matter.
The matter was further complicated when Trew issued a statement on December 23 stating, in part, that Beard did not choke her and that she did not want Beard to be arrested, despite claiming otherwise during the 911 call. .
“Chris didn’t choke me, and I reported it to law enforcement that night,” Trew said two weeks ago. “Chris stated that he acted in self-defense, and I do not refute this. I don’t believe Chris was trying to intentionally harm me in any way.”
Or is it that hard? Trew’s statement is not the first time a victim has retracted his testimony after the fact. And despite this, Beard’s contract stated that he could be fired in the case due to a felony charge or other behavior that reflected badly on the university. Both were true on December 12—and both are true today.
