Alabama AD Greg Byrne comments on Nate Oats initial statement on Brandon Miller

Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne was critical of Crimson Tide head basketball coach Nate Oats for his comments during Tuesday’s weekly press conference in regard to Brandon Miller‘s involvement in a deadly shooting.

Oats said that Miller was in the ‘wrong spot at the wrong time,’ and that he can’t control everything his players do outside of practice. He also noted that Miller has never been in any type of trouble in the past.

“He knew the hearing was going on, he had not been briefed on what had been said at the hearing when he walked into [the press conference]. … Tuesday was his normal media gathering,” Byrne said. “He had not been updated on his way into the press conference. He obviously didn’t help himself. We talked, he’s remorseful for that and we’ve dealt with that.

“I’ve been pleased up until that point with Nate’s empathy in trying to navigate through this very challenging situation. He didn’t do a very good job of it yesterday, but I also know that he wasn’t trying to be disrespectful — his comments just didn’t come across the way they should have.”

Byrne comments on Nate Oats playing Brandon Miller vs. South Carolina

Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne has commented on Brandon Miller‘s involvement in a deadly shooting alongside a teammate Darius Miles. He also discussed the decision of having him play against South Carolina Wednesday evening.

“It was an ongoing conversation from when the incident happened. It was a conversation between Nate Oats, myself and the president. We have legal council involved with the university … collectively, we decided that Brandon was able to play,” Byrne said.”

The gun was owned by Miles, to which Byrne said that every Alabama student-athlete is given weapons education. From a university standpoint, guns are not allowed on campus, either.

Byrne admitted he knew from the start that both Miller and teammate Jaden Bradley were at the scene of the shooting which killed Jamea Jonae Harris. Byrne was told early on that they were not suspects in the case, leading to the final decision to play him amid the investigation. 

With further context revealed to Byrne over the past 24 hours with contact with Miller’s legal team, it was clear to Byrne that there wasn’t enough evidence to punish Miller because there was no legal action taken.

Alabama athletics department releases statement on Brandon Miller

The Alabama athletics department has released a statement regarding Crimson Tide star basketball player Brandon Miller‘s involvement in a deadly shooting last month. 

“UA Athletics continues to cooperate fully with law enforcement in the ongoing investigation of this tragic situation. Based on all the information we have received, Brandon Miller is not considered a suspect in this case, only a cooperative witness,” AU Athletics said in a release.

“Today’s statement from Brandon’s lawyer adds additional context that the University has considered as part of its review of the facts. Based on all of the facts we have gathered, Brandon remains an active member of our team.”

Police testimony on Tuesday revealed Miller received a text from former teammate Darius Miles asking him to bring the gun to the scene of the shooting which killed Jamea Jonae Harris. The gun belonged to Miles, as previous court records said, and Miller’s attorney released a statement Wednesday sharing his side of the story.

Byrne acknowledged the new information the statement showed and shared what he knew about the extent of Miller’s involvement in that Jan. 15 incident. He also acknowledged Alabama coach Nate Oats’ comments in light of the testimony and said the athletic department handled that accordingly. Oats later released another statement clarifying his remarks.

Miller is expected to start for the Crimson Tide Wednesday night despite the ongoing investigation. The No. 2 Tide will take on South Carolina at 9 p.m. ET live on ESPN2.