Report: Utah State football coach Blake Anderson placed on leave, unlikely to return

A month before fall football camp begins, Utah State is likely looking at a head-coaching change.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported Tuesday morning Aggies head coach Blake Anderson was placed on administrative leave and unlikely to return to the school. Defensive coordinator Nate Dreiling was tabbed as Utah State’s interim coach.

Initial reports have not included details on why Anderson was placed on leave and likely to be let go as the team’s head coach, but Utah State’s athletic program and university have been rocked by recent scandal.

Anderson was the subject of a lawsuit by a former Utah State player in 2022. Patrick Maddox, who played linebacker for the Aggies from 2019-21, alleged Andersson and his teammates retaliated against him after he recorded Anderson making derogatory remarks about sexual assault victims. Maddox filed a lawsuit in federal court against Anderson and Utah State in October 2022 before settling for $150,000 from the school.

During a team meeting, Maddox recorded comments from Utah State police chief Earl Morris in which Morris told players to be careful about having sex with members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints because they may eventually say the sex wasn’t consensual. Anderson was recorded saying “it has never been more glamorized to be a victim” of sexual assault and claimed football players could be targets for such allegations.

Anderson and Morris both apologized for their comments after the recording was released. Maddox resigned but Anderson retained his job. In December 2021, Anderson got a contract extension through 2027.

Maddox claimed Anderson said his comments being revealed would hurt his standing in Logan since he is a Christian and Utah is heavily populated by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. According to Maddox’s lawsuit, Anderson demanded the player apologize to his teammates for recording the meeting or “it would get incredibly uncomfortable in the locker room.” Maddox apologized to the team but then had his locker broken into and was told his scholarship wouldn’t be renewed for the 2022 season. He quit the team in February 2022.

Shortly after Maddox’s lawsuit was filed, Utah State athletic director John Hartwell resigned after evidence of a vulgar joke circulated the Internet. Utah State president Noelle Cockett stepped down shortly after. Those moves came after Utah State was ensnarled in allegations around mishandled sexual assault reports that included cases involving the football team. Utah State was investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice, which found fewer than 25 of more than 200 reports of sexual harassment and assault from 2013-18 went through proper Title IX reporting protocols.

In 2021, Utah State student Kaytriauna Flint filed a case alleging she was raped by a member of the Aggies football team in 2019. That came prior to Anderson’s hiring. She claimed the school protected the players and brushed off her case. Maddox was a friend of Flint and recorded the audio in hopes of helping her case. According to KUTV, three Utah State football since 2021 have been arrested for sexual assault, including one last season.

Anderson’s current situation could be unrelated to those previous issues at Utah State but also could continue a trend of issues at the university. Anderson was hired by Utah State before the 2021 season and led the Aggies to one of the biggest turnarounds in FBS history. After inheriting a team that went 1-5 the previous year, Anderson led Utah State to an 11-3 record and Mountain West title in 2021 during his debut season. The team finished 24th in the final AP Top 25 poll. The Aggies are coming off back-to-back 6-7 seasons and bowl appearances. Anderson is 40-23 in three seasons at Utah State and 74-54 as an FBS head coach when including his seven seasons at Arkansas State. He’s led his team to nine bowl games in 10 seasons.

Anderson announced the birth of a son just three days ago on June 29. Anderson has suffered through a number of traumatic family events in recent years with his wife, Wendy, dying of cancer in August 2019. His 21-year-old son, Cason, died by suicide in February 2022 with the elder Anderson becoming a vocal proponent of mental-health services since then.

Later Tuesday, Utah State announced it informed Blake Anderson of its internet to terminate his employment agreement for actions taken in spring 2023.

“These actions violated both his employment agreement and university policy,” Utah State said in a statement. “Under his employment agreement Coach Anderson will have 14 days to respond. This decision comes after a thorough external review of alleged noncompliance with university policies that implement Title IX, which require full and timely reporting of disclosures of sexual misconduct — including domestic violence — and prohibit employees from investigating disclosures of sexual misconduct themselves.”

The school said it could not release any additional information until all opportunities to respond and/or appeal have expired, which is a minimum of 14 days.

“As leaders, we are responsible for ensuring allegations of USU policy violations are investigated,” Utah State president Elizabeth Cantwell and athletic director Diana Sabau said in a news release. “Today’s actions are the result of a thorough external investigation, and we believe the evidence demands immediate action. Our job is to fearlessly hold ourselves and others accountable for their conduct and to make sure that, for the sake of our students and our community, we are living the values of our university. While recognizing the impact of these decisions on our student-athletes and football program, we will continue to take the steps necessary to deliver a respectful, transparent and winning culture at Utah State University.”

Deputy athletic director Jerry Bovee and football director of player development Austin Albrecht also were dismissed “for violations of university policies related to the reporting of sexual and domestic violence and failures of professional responsibilities.”

Utah State is scheduled to open the 2024 season Aug. 31 at home against Robert Morris.