DAVIS, Calif — UC Davis has announced the head coach resigned after the conclusion of an investigation into possible hazing during a UC Davis baseball annual initiation tradition.
Matt Vaughn, the former UC Davis baseball head coach, is stepping down as the current assistant coaching staff will stay in place on an interim basis. The athletics department will be launching a national search for a new head baseball coach.
According to a press release, after talking to several university employees and over a dozen current and former players the school determined, "new players were hazed via a series of challenges involving dangerously excessive drinking and other inappropriate activities, as well as a team culture of alcohol use and pressure to use alcohol."
Susan Lipkins, a psychologist and a hazing expert, told ABC10 why hazing remains to be a tradition for college sports teams.
"I think sometimes coaches look the other way, because they think that this is part of the culture, and it's going to happen, this is how kids bond," Lipkins said. "Really this is not the kind of thing you want your child to experience.
Lipkins said those who experience hazing may have difficulty sleeping focusing on school. They may also have low self-esteem, depression and even post-traumatic stress syndrome."
According to UC Davis, the last such initiation activities happened during the 2019-20 academic year. Moving forward, the Intercollegiate Athletics will take the following actions:
- Unsupervised team activities on and off-campus are prohibited for the remainder of the 2021-22 baseball season.
- A sports administrator will travel with the baseball team for the remainder of the 2021-22 season.
- There will be a reduction in the non-conference baseball game schedule for the 2021-22 season.
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A Hazing Prevention Task Force was started in April 2020 by the vice chancellor for Student Affairs, according to UC Davis. A year later, the school said the task force filed a report that included hazing-prevention recommendations for the campus.
In July 2021, the entire UC Davis baseball team was suspended while the program was being investigated for allegations of misconduct. UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May later revealed that the investigation stemmed from "credible allegations primarily related to hazing."
Then in October 2021, practice sessions for the UC Davis baseball program resumed as an investigation into misconduct allegations continued till it's conclusion Friday.
Moving forward, the school also announced the ICA and Student Affairs will put in place a new training series for all student-athletes to inform them of healthy choices around risky social behaviors and health and well-being resources. Plus, the ICA will work with RealResponse, a third-party reporting group, to provide a new anonymous reporting tool for student-athletes to seek help or share concerns.
