University of Houston adds 2 former Baylor assistant coaches to football staff
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The University of Houston has announced the hiring of two former Baylor football assistant coaches -- both controversial moves for the Cougars football program.
Head coach Major Applewhite announced the additions of Kendal Briles and Randy Clements.
Briles, son of former Baylor coach Art Briles, will serve as the team's associate head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Clements will take over as the run game coordinator and offensive line coach.
"We are excited to welcome Kendal, Randy and their families back to Houston. They have extensive knowledge of our program and its standards, and we know they will be the right fit," said Applewhite in a statement.
The moves are controversial for the Cougars because both coaches were on the Baylor coaching staff during its sexual assault scandal.
Currently, Briles is listed in an ongoing Title IX lawsuit against Baylor. The lawsuit states that Briles told a recruit from Dallas, "Do you like white women? Because we have a lot of them at Baylor and they love football players."
Briles spent the 2017 season as assistant head coach, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Florida Atlantic University under head coach Lane Kiffin.
During the 2017 football season, Clements served as Southeastern University's offensive line coach. He spent nine seasons at Baylor and five seasons at Houston.
Full statement released by Applewhite:
"These hires, like all of our hires, are not taken lightly and we certainly delve into the background of all of our candidates to ensure who we hire fit the University of Houston standards. We did our due diligence with Kendal and Randy, and are not aware of any circumstances where either were directly implicated in any wrongdoing.
"Since leaving Baylor, both have taken on new employment opportunities and were successful members of coaching staffs, on and off the field. They have full knowledge of our University's standards and expectations for our coaching staff and our student-athletes. We look forward to growing our program and moving forward with both."
