Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Eric Murdock files lawsuit against Rutgers (VIDEO)

Eric Murdock

Eric Murdock speaks during a news conference in East Hanover, N.J., Friday, April 5, 2013. Murdock, a former Rutgers empoyee who made public the video that led to the basketball coach’s dismissal and athletic director’s resignation, has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the university. Murdock filed the lawsuit Friday in state court, claiming the university violated the state’s employee protection act and his contract. (AP Photo/Rich Schultz)

AP

It went from bad to worse on Friday for the Rutgers men’s basketball team. Two days after Mike Rice was fired, Director of Athletics Tim Pernetti resigned and Rutgers President Robert Barchi admitted mistakes were made and there was a “failure of process.”

Then that same afternoon, Eric Murdock, the former Rutgers employee who released the tape announced the he would file a lawsuit against the university for wrongful termination. Murdock was the director of player development for Rutgers, but his contract was not renewed this past July, according to school.

Murdock, a former guard in the NBA, says that he was let go after a dispute with Rice for skipping a camp, but the main reason was he complained about Rice’s treatment towards players. Murdock also claims he provided the university with the video in November, show what ESPN aired on Tuesday -- Rice throwing basketballs and shoving players while using offensive language including gay slurs.

“Efforts to get Rutgers to address their problems were ignored for months,” Murdock told reporters during a Friday afternoon press conference. “Instead I was removed from my position. That is wrong and that is why I filed a lawsuit.”

The video above is the brief press conference Murdock held on Friday, courtesy of NBCNewYork.com

The 18-page lawsuit can be seen here, courtesy of NJ.com

Terrence is also the lead writer at NEHoopNews.com and can be followed on Twitter: @terrence_payne