In a short-notice mandatory meeting Monday, Colorado Mesa University Director of Athletics Tom Spicer told CMU track and field athletes that Head Coach Brian Beeman and Assistant Coach Michael Beeman have been relieved of their positions.
Athletes had been mounting complaints against the two brothers to Austin Kaiser, CMU’s assistant director of athletics for student success and compliance, which finally led to the coaches’ exits.
“We had a few kids quit because of the Beemans, which is sad,” senior runner Bacall Sterling said.
Spicer released a statement Wednesday announcing he had accepted the Beemans’ resignation.
“We have identified many issues within the track and field program that were detrimental to the student-athlete,” said Spicer. “The decision to make a change was made with the best interest of the student-athlete in mind.”
Brian Beeman was originally brought on to the track and field program in the Summer of 2015 as an assistant coach. He was elevated to the head coach position after former Head Coach Matt Canterbury stepped down in December of that year.
Michael Beeman was brought on to the program shortly after, under circumstances unclear to the team. Sterling told the Criterion there was no explanation of his hiring or his qualifications.
“Brian told us one day at practice that we were getting a new hurdle coach and after that he didn’t tell us who it was and then later on he said it was his brother,” Sterling said. “It seems like he just brought him on because he was his brother.”
The seasons following became turbulent as relations between team members and the coaches soured.
“A lot of my teammates were unhappy with how they’ve been treated,” runner Zeke Sandoval said. Sandoval had recently submitted his resignation to Brian Beeman, an action that multiple athletes were reportedly threatening.
Many athletes remained vocal about their complaints and took to Twitter today and throughout the Beemans’ tenure:
my coach clearly picks favorites and doesn't even give people a chance. idk how he became a college coach
— santa’s side piece ❄️ (@tapptastical) January 24, 2017
we're having a sudden team mtg.. will our issues be brought to light? will our head coach be fired?? find out on the next episode of cmu t&f
— sarah (@rockybabyy) March 28, 2017
https://twitter.com/PappaBear53/status/846819721735557121
Matt Canterbury, Katrice Thomas and Yasin Gulgan will handle the duties of the track and field program for the rest of the semester.
