The sexual assault allegations at Baylor have been an ongoing news story for the past year-plus. Investigations and the administration response have made this look like a deep-rooted, systematic issue with the school, which has made most defending Baylor look foolish. The latest on that front is women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey.
Mulkey spoke to the home fans after her 500th win as head coach at Baylor, which came Saturday with a 86-48 thumping of Texas Tech, and improved the No. 4 Lady Bears’ record to 27-2. Her address to the crowd was filled with emotion and left many outsiders scratching their heads. Her quote sticks out considering the ongoing investigations that are occurring at Baylor.
“If somebody is around you and they ever say ‘I will never send my daughter to Baylor,’ you knock them right in the face.”
Kim Mulkey sounds off on recent national scrutiny about #Baylor and female student safety on campus after Lady Bears' win. pic.twitter.com/Jy8YUDhtBW
— John Elizondo (@johndelizondo) February 25, 2017
Mulkey’s statement was met with cheers from the crowd. She doubled down on her halftime comments postgame when talking to the press. She believes that the sexual assault issues on Baylor’s campus aren’t any different than those on any other college campus.
Mulkey explained her comments in the post-game press conference. #Baylor pic.twitter.com/emhBU1Ytew
— John Elizondo (@johndelizondo) February 25, 2017
31 Baylor football players have allegedly committed 52 acts of rape over the course of three years. Recently, a Texas state representative has asked for a resolution that will investigate Baylor University even closer than before. So there’s a lot to suggest that Baylor’s issues aren’t exactly the norm.
It’s understandable why Mulkey wants to defend Baylor. She’s coached there since 2000, leading the Bears to a 500-94 (.842) overall record, two national championships, three Final Four appearances and seven Elite Eight appearances. Moreover, she has a direct stake in getting recruits and their parents to consider Baylor. It has to be frustrating for that to be hurt by this scandal and by the response from football coaches and the overall administration, none of which is necessarily her fault.
However, while it’s reasonable for Mulkey to be emotional and passionate here, she shouldn’t get a pass for these comments. They come off as tone-deaf attempt to minimize the severity of this scandal, and they could do a lot of damage, especially to those that are trying to recover from these heinous assaults.
Baylor doesn’t need to do better, it has to do better.