Bob Huggins Claims West Virginia Falsified His Retirement Announcement

The school announced the head coach had resigned on June 17 following his arrest for DUI.

On June 17, West Virginia announced that former men’s basketball coach Bob Huggins had submitted a letter of resignation following his arrest for DUI in Pittsburgh earlier that weekend. Huggins released a statement on Monday claiming that the statement the school put out and attributed to him had been forged.

“I now understand that WVU published a statement purportedly written by me at 10:30 p.m. on June 17, 2023 … I did not draft or review WVU’s statement,” Huggins wrote, per Fox’s John Fanta. “This false statement was sent under my name, but no signature is included. In addition, the false, unsigned statement, was accompanied by a joint statement from the President and Athletics Director that clearly implied that they received this purported resignation letter from me.”

Huggins’s arrest occurred on June 16 after officers saw his car stuck in the middle of the road blocking traffic. When Huggins struggled to perform a three-point turn, the officer on the scene approached the car, noting that Huggins’s breath smelled of alcohol and describing his speech as “slurred and mumbling.”

In his statement on Monday, Huggins apologized for the arrest and wrote that he was currently receiving treatment in a “world-class rehabilitation center.” He also claimed that he never submitted a resignation to the school and still wishes to coach the team, and concluded by stating that he hoped representatives from the school’s administration would meet with him soon.

“It is clear that WVU did not handle the situation appropriately,” Huggins wrote. “More importantly, the basketball program is in need and I have a strong desire to conclude my career as the head basketball coach for the program that I love. I hope to meet with WVU in the near future to resolve this situation.”