UF student newspaper:
The new soccer coach for the University of Florida is leaving under pressure after its worst-ever season, the school said Wednesday. The decision came amid unprecedented numbers of players leaving the program after his hiring and complaints by athletes who said he pressured them about eating habits and their bodies.
Florida’s athletic director, Scott Stricklin, notified players of the decision regarding coach Tony Amato after only one season in a private meeting Wednesday. That came just before Stricklin and Amato were scheduled to discuss the complaints in separate one-on-one media interviews for an investigative news article that was to be published later this week.
Stricklin scheduled an afternoon press conference to announce the news, which he described as an “extremely difficult” decision. The university was careful not to describe Amato’s departure as a resignation or say whether he was fired. Amato abruptly canceled his media interview.
“My thorough evaluation of the soccer program is that there is a disconnect between Tony and his athletes,” Stricklin said in a statement. “We have worked diligently with Tony since last fall when I first became aware of challenges with relationship building and communication. As the issues continued to be brought to my attention, it became apparent that sufficient progress was not being made and Tony was not a fit for the University of Florida.”
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Amato’s style of soccer is fitness oriented, where running is the focus, players from UF and Arizona said. That contrasted with Burleigh, the former coach, whose style was based more on strategy and finesse. Florida and Arizona players said Amato recruits women who are built like cross-country runners, tall and thin.
The same former Florida player said she developed an eating disorder over the fall season.
“I know I’m in no way, shape or form fat,” she said, “but it was like, you could see who he played versus who he didn’t play. And every single person was just stick-thin. And the comments about eating got to me.”
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Players also said Amato told them he wouldn’t play them if they ate ice cream the night before a game. One player said she bought a box of Pop-Tarts on the way back from their game against Georgia in October, and Amato asked, “What are those?” while making what the player described as a dirty face.
Florida’s players were asked to reveal their weights for charter flights for away games, players said. An athlete who played under Burleigh for five seasons said she never remembered players being asked for their weight to tell the charter flight people. The athletes also thought it odd that Amato’s staff said it only needed their body weights and not their luggage weights.
www.wuft.org
The new soccer coach for the University of Florida is leaving under pressure after its worst-ever season, the school said Wednesday. The decision came amid unprecedented numbers of players leaving the program after his hiring and complaints by athletes who said he pressured them about eating habits and their bodies.
Florida’s athletic director, Scott Stricklin, notified players of the decision regarding coach Tony Amato after only one season in a private meeting Wednesday. That came just before Stricklin and Amato were scheduled to discuss the complaints in separate one-on-one media interviews for an investigative news article that was to be published later this week.
Stricklin scheduled an afternoon press conference to announce the news, which he described as an “extremely difficult” decision. The university was careful not to describe Amato’s departure as a resignation or say whether he was fired. Amato abruptly canceled his media interview.
“My thorough evaluation of the soccer program is that there is a disconnect between Tony and his athletes,” Stricklin said in a statement. “We have worked diligently with Tony since last fall when I first became aware of challenges with relationship building and communication. As the issues continued to be brought to my attention, it became apparent that sufficient progress was not being made and Tony was not a fit for the University of Florida.”
...
Amato’s style of soccer is fitness oriented, where running is the focus, players from UF and Arizona said. That contrasted with Burleigh, the former coach, whose style was based more on strategy and finesse. Florida and Arizona players said Amato recruits women who are built like cross-country runners, tall and thin.
The same former Florida player said she developed an eating disorder over the fall season.
“I know I’m in no way, shape or form fat,” she said, “but it was like, you could see who he played versus who he didn’t play. And every single person was just stick-thin. And the comments about eating got to me.”
...
Players also said Amato told them he wouldn’t play them if they ate ice cream the night before a game. One player said she bought a box of Pop-Tarts on the way back from their game against Georgia in October, and Amato asked, “What are those?” while making what the player described as a dirty face.
Florida’s players were asked to reveal their weights for charter flights for away games, players said. An athlete who played under Burleigh for five seasons said she never remembered players being asked for their weight to tell the charter flight people. The athletes also thought it odd that Amato’s staff said it only needed their body weights and not their luggage weights.
Florida soccer coach leaving after complaints by players over comments about eating habits, bodies
The University of Florida fired its new soccer coach Wednesday after only one season amid unprecedented numbers of players leaving the program after his…
www.wuft.org
