PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) - Once the video went viral, Mike Rice's coaching days at Rutgers were over.
Now the question is whether anyone else will lose their jobs - including the athletic director who in December suspended and fined Rice for the abusive behavior, and the university president who signed off on it.
Rice was fired Wednesday, one day after a video surfaced of him hitting, shoving and berating his players with anti-gay slurs.
Rice, in his third season with the Scarlet Knights, apologized outside his home.
"I've let so many people down: my players, my administration, Rutgers University, the fans, my family, who's sitting in their house just huddled around because of the fact their father was an embarrassment to them," he said. "I want to tell everybody who's believed in me that I'm deeply sorry for the pain and hardship that I've caused."
Athletic director Tim Pernetti was given a copy of the tape by a former employee in November and, after an independent investigator was hired to review it, Rice was suspended for three games, fined $75,000 and ordered to attend anger management classes. university president Robert Barchi agreed to the penalty.
Pernetti initially said Tuesday he and Barchi viewed the video in December. The president issued a statement Wednesday, saying he didn't see it until Tuesday and then moved to fire the 44-year-old coach for repeated abusive conduct. Through a school spokesman, Pernetti backed up his president and said Barchi did not view the video until this week.