Reports find Stanford's Taylor bullied, belittled female staffers - ESPN

Stanford head football coach Troy Taylor bullied and belittled female athletic staffers, sought to have an NCAA compliance officer removed after she warned him of rules violations and repeatedly made «inappropriate» comments to another woman about her appearance, according to documents from a pair of investigations obtained by ESPN.

After the first investigation, Taylor signed a warning letter on Feb. 14, 2024, acknowledging he could be fired if the conduct continued, according to the documents. Additional complaints were documented in a second investigation that ended last July 24, but Taylor remains on the job today.

In a statement released by Stanford on Wednesday, Taylor said he was using the investigations to improve «how I interact with others.»

«I willingly complied with the investigations, accepted the recommendations that came out of them, and used them as a learning opportunity to grow in leadership and how I interact with others,» Taylor said in the statement. «I look forward to continuing to work collaboratively and collegially with my colleagues so that we can achieve success for our football program together.»

In a separate statement, a university spokesperson said, «Stanford believes in upholding the highest standards of behavior in the workplace.»

«The University received complaints regarding Coach Taylor and a third party investigated the matter thoroughly. Last summer, the University took appropriate measures, Coach Taylor received coaching, and he has committed to nurturing the respectful working environment that is essential to the success of all our athletics programs.»

Athletic director Bernard Muir, who recently announced his intention to resign after the current academic year, declined to comment.