The University of Tennessee in Chattanooga fired an assistant coach after he posted a tweet disparaging former Georgia governor candidate Stacey Abrams, the school announced in a 45-second video.
Chris Malone, who was an offensive line coach for the Mocs, smeared Abrams as he spouted election fraud claims in a now-deleted tweet Tuesday night.
“Congratulations to GA State and Fat Albert @staceyabrams for really showing America the true work of cheating in an election, again !!! Enjoy the buffet Big Girl !! You deserved it !!! Hope that the money is still good not governor! ”he said, according to screenshots of the tweet.
University Chancellor Steven Angle condemned his tweet, calling it “hateful, hurtful and untrue” two days later in a video.
“Coach Malone is no longer part of this university,” Angle said on Thursday. “The university’s faculty and staff are expected to lead in a manner that establishes and maintains a respectful and tolerant civil campus environment.”
“The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga does not tolerate and unequivocally condemns discrimination and hatred of all forms,” added Angle.
The team’s head coach, Rusty Wright, too slammed Malone’s tweet Thursday in a statement.
“What has been posted on social media by a member of my staff is unacceptable and is not part of what I stand for or what Chattanooga Football stands for,” he said. “Life is bigger than football and as leaders of young men, we have to set that example first and foremost. That said, effective immediately, that individually is no longer part of my workforce.”
According to the deleted school biography page, Malone was on the team in his sophomore year as an assistant coach. Malone, who has coached several schools since 1998, worked at Virginia State University, a historically black university.
Many gave Abrams credit for the Democrats’ recent success in the Georgia polls, where she and grassroots organizations helped boost voter turnout that led to expected victories for Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in their Senate matches and gave her party to the majority in the Senate. She is also credited as an instrumental in the victory of President-elect Joe Biden in a traditionally red state.