Stanford ‘needs a reset,’ fires football HC Taylor

Stanford fired football coach Troy Taylor, the school announced Tuesday.

The decision comes a week after ESPN reported that two outside firms had found 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.

“Since beginning my role as General Manager, I have been thoroughly assessing the entire Stanford football program. It has been clear that certain aspects of the program need change,” Stanford football general manager Andrew Luck said in a statement. “Additionally, in recent days, there has been significant attention to Stanford investigations in previous years related to Coach Taylor.

“After continued consideration it is evident to me that our program needs a reset. In consultation with university leadership, I no longer believe that Coach Taylor is the right coach to lead our football program. Coach Taylor has been informed today and the change is effective immediately.”

It is unclear whether the university will have to pay out the remainder of Taylor’s contract.

In response to ESPN’s report last week, Stanford said Taylor had complied with the investigations and was committed to improving his behavior. Sources told ESPN that Luck met with the team in Taylor’s presence on Thursday and doubled down on his support for the coach.

— Stanford Football (@StanfordFball) March 25, 2025

According to documents obtained by ESPN, the investigations began after multiple employees filed complaints against Taylor for what they called hostile and aggressive behavior, as well as personal attacks, the reports said. The school hired Kate Weaver Patterson, of KWP Consulting & Mediation, to investigate in spring 2023.

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 remained on the job.

The second investigation cited evidence “that this is an ongoing pattern of concerning behavior by Coach Taylor.” It was conducted last June and July by Timothy O’Brien, senior counsel for the Libby, O’Brien, Kingsley & Champion law firm in Maine. O’Brien, who has advised several Division I and Power 5 programs, said in his report that he has never encountered “this palpable level of animosity and disdain” for a university compliance office.

“Even during the interview with me, when talking about compliance issues, Coach Taylor’s tone was forceful and aggressive,” O’Brien wrote.

He called Taylor’s treatment of the team’s compliance officer “inappropriate, discriminatory on the basis of her sex,” saying it had a “significant negative impact” on the staffer. O’Brien concluded that Taylor retaliated against the compliance staffer by “seeking her removal from her assigned duties” after she raised concerns about NCAA rules violations related to illegal practices and player eligibility.

O’Brien outlined possible disciplinary procedures, including termination, under NCAA bylaws if an employee retaliates, “such as intimidating, threatening, or harassing an individual who has raised a claim.”

One source with direct knowledge told ESPN that Taylor has “lost the locker room.” Two sources told ESPN that Taylor’s behavior extended beyond athletic department and compliance office staff and onto the field.

Taylor had back-to-back 3-9 seasons before he was fired. He was previously the head coach at Sacramento State.

In a statement to ESPN last week, Taylor said he was using the investigations as a “learning opportunity.”

“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. “I look forward to continuing to work collaboratively and collegially with my colleagues so that we can achieve success for our football program together.”

Taylor did not immediately respond to a message from ESPN seeking comment on Tuesday’s firing.

Pete Thamel contributed to this report.