Something very serious is happening at Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio, and it is not your typical sports drama. The women’s basketball program is in trouble, and at the center of the controversy is head coach Erin Eaton.
Families of former players are demanding her termination and asking the NCAA to intervene. They assert that it was not tough coaching, but constant verbal and mental abuse that pushed the players to a breaking point.
I have played under strict coaches before, and honestly, there is a big difference between discipline and straight-up disrespect. Yelling happens in sports, but once it turns personal, it messes with your head. That is what this feels like.
Coach Erin Eaton has an extensive background in basketball. She played at Elmira College and did very well before entering coaching. At that point, she coached at various colleges before coming to Heidelberg. But this is not the first time complaints have followed her. Families disputed charges like those at Muskingum University.
Now in her second season as a head coach at Heidelberg, everything has exploded. Families coming from different places provided player interviews, audio recordings, and even a long demand letter that Martin Greenberg, a well-known sports lawyer who has worked on major college sports cases, wrote.
The emails are on the painful end of listening. In one of those closed-team meetings, Eaton reportedly declared that she hated the team and that the season was miserable. Players alleged she did use harsh language and blamed them for her own health problems. Having been subbed with a slash by a coach, I know these words stick with you for way longer than a bad game ever would.
That said, former player Jewel Persinger noted that a tough coach should also care about you as a person. That sounds entirely right to me. No coach should break you down just to feel powerful.
Things got even worse when Eaton’s boyfriend, Geoff Vejsicky, became involved. He is not a university employee, but he addressed players in private. He said he had $4,000 invested in the program and was not happy, according to a recording. That alone sounds wrong. Players allege he yelled at suspended teammates, which is something you never expect from a coach’s partner.
I have never seen a coach’s boyfriend step into a locker room situation. That instantly crosses a line.
It would appear that the players themselves are deeply affected emotionally. After one game, Eaton reportedly shouted so loudly at the team that players attempted to hide from her. Jewel’s mother said her daughter had a mental breakdown and begged her to stop playing basketball. Her time on the court was reduced afterward, which the family assumed was in consequence.
His father asked a deep and profound question. If several players go to counseling for anxiety and depression, how can it be that nobody at the university knows something is wrong? That portion hurts pretty badly.
Families say players were told not to speak to their parents. Student leaders attempted to help but were blocked. The players also felt less like humans and more like targets. A lot of them quit basketball altogether, though that was the very reason they came to Heidelberg.
In March, lawyer Martin Greenberg sent a demand letter requesting the termination of Eaton and NCAA oversight. He also accused the university of negligent hiring and failure to protect offending athletes.
Heidelberg University then reduced its position and, while denying NCAA or legal violations, said it conducted an external review that found none. They say student safety is their top priority and that they are working to improve communication and respect.
Greenberg says he never received the full report and believes important conduct issues may be buried.
Above it all, this story represents a general issue in college athletics, especially in smaller Division III programs. Coaching should push a player to become better; it should never break him mentally.
The families hope this means real change will come so that future players do not experience the same pain they did. You may also be interested in: 7 Year Old Black Child Called Monkey at Augusta County School and Stopped From Playing Basketball
