Mark Adams steps down as Texas Tech men's basketball coach

Updated Mar 8, 2023 10:58 pm EST

Texas Tech men's basketball coach Mark Adams resigned from his position Wednesday following the Red Raiders' season-ending loss to West Virginia in the Big 12 tournament's opening round.

The school announced the news just three days after Adams was suspended over an "inappropriate, unacceptable, and racially insensitive comment" he made to a player.

Athletic director Kirby Hocutt said he was made aware of the incident Friday and issued a written reprimand before deciding to suspend Adams to investigate further.

The incident occurred in a meeting between Adams and a player, who wasn’t identified, the school said in a news release.

"Adams was encouraging the student-athlete to be more receptive to coaching and referenced Bible verses about workers, teachers, parents, and slaves serving their masters," the statement said. "Adams immediately addressed this with the team and apologized."

The 66-year-old Adams was in his second season at Texas Tech. He replaced Chris Beard, who left to coach Texas, his alma mater. Beard was fired this season by the Longhorns after he was charged in a felony domestic violence case. Prosecutors later dropped the charge.

The Red Raiders made the Sweet 16 in Adams’ first season but started 0-8 in the Big 12 this season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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