ACC

Tim Beckman steps down as North Carolina volunteer assistant

Dan Wolken
USA TODAY Sports

One day after it became public that former Illinois coach Tim Beckman had joined North Carolina's staff as a volunteer assistant coach, he stepped down Thursday and said he did not want to be a distraction for the Tar Heels.

Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Tim Beckman in the game against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs in the Heart of Dallas Bowl at Cotton Bowl Stadium. Louisiana Tech beat Illinois 35-18.

Beckman was fired prior to last season after allegations surrounding the way injured players were treated. A university-commissioned report from the Franczek Radelet law firm out of Chicago concluded that Beckman had acted inappropriately in "pressuring or influencing players not to report injuries or play through them" and that he had made demeaning comments about injured players as a motivational tactic.

North Carolina originally defended the move by saying Beckman would not be working with players, only analyzing film. Coach Larry Fedora, who worked with Beckman at Oklahoma State a decade ago, said Wednesday Beckman was fired because "the guy didn't win enough games."

Wolken: North Carolina's Larry Fedora makes two big mistakes at one time in Tim Beckman hire

Fedora also dismissed the controversy over Beckman as a couple days of bad publicity, telling reporters, "a couple days from now it won't be news."

That stance, however, appears to have changed overnight.

“I appreciate the opportunity Coach Fedora gave me to stay connected to the sport and be around one of the best staffs in the country," Beckman said in a university release. "His willingness to help a friend was a benefit both personally and professionally.  I do not wish to be a further distraction to the team or University and I will no longer serve as a volunteer at UNC. I wish Larry and the program nothing but success going forward.”

UNC Chancellor Carol Folt also released a statement Thursday, saying she was disappointed in Fedora's invitation to Beckman.

“When I first learned yesterday that Coach Larry Fedora had invited former Illinois head coach Tim Beckman to serve as a volunteer with the football program, I was surprised and disappointed," the statement read. "The decision for Mr. Beckman to withdraw from his volunteer position was the right thing to do, and moving forward I don’t expect this situation to recur. I continue to put a great deal of trust in Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham and Coach Fedora to educate and develop our student-athletes and to ensure we meet the high standards we all expect at Carolina.”