The real facts behind Grambling State's indefensible Art Briles hire

Art Briles is back in college football, and no matter how hard anyone at Grambling State tries, this is a decision that cannot be explained away. Especially not the way Grambling State's athletic director is attempting to do so. In puzzling comments to ESPN, Trayvean Scott said he is "rooted in fact" in defending his decision to hire Briles as the football team's new offensive coordinator on Thursday -- a statement that seems to indicate the absolute opposite. In case Scott has not read up on the man he is welcoming into his university, let's get to some actual facts:

Baylor fired then-head coach Briles in 2016 after an independent investigation by law firm Pepper Hamilton into the school's handling of sexual violence allegations revealed a football program where players were "above the rules" with "no culture of accountability for misconduct." In addition, the findings "reflect significant concerns about the tone and culture within Baylor's football program as it relates to accountability for all forms of athlete misconduct." While Briles was taking the program to unprecedented heights during his eight-year tenure, going 65-37 with two Big 12 championships, one lawsuit filed in 2017 alleged that at least 52 rapes by more than 30 football players happened over a four-year period. When allegations were brought to Briles or others inside the football program, Pepper Hamilton found, "The choices made by football staff and athletics leadership, in some instances, posed a risk to campus safety and the integrity of the University. In certain instances, including reports of a sexual assault by multiple football players, athletics and football personnel affirmatively chose not to report sexual violence and dating violence to an appropriate administrator outside of athletics."