ACC commissioner Jim Phillips issues statement after being named in Northwestern lawsuit

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips has released a statement after he was named in a lawsuit regarding hazing allegations at Northwestern. Phillips served as NU’s athletic director before taking over as ACC commissioner in 2021.

“This has been a difficult time for the Northwestern University community, a place that my entire family has called home,” Phillips said, via Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde. “Over my thirty-year career in intercollegiate athletics, my highest priority has always been the health and safety of all student-athletes. Hazing is completely unacceptable anywhere, and my heart goes out to anyone who carries the burden of having been mistreated.

“Any allegation that I ever condoned or tolerated inappropriate conduct against student-athletes is absolutely false. I will vigorously defend myself against any suggestion to the contrary.”

Phillips serve as the athletic director at Northwestern from 2008-21 after serving in the same role at Northern Illinois. He was a candidate for the Big Ten commissioner job that eventually went to Kevin Warren and took over the ACC in 2021. After again emerging as a possible candidate to replace Warren, the ACC gave Phillips a contract extension to keep him with the league through the end of the decade.

Phillips was listed as a defendant in a lawsuit against the university on Wednesday along with athletic director Derrick Gragg, current president Michael Schill, former president Morton Schapiro, former football coach Pat Fitzgerald and the university’s board of trustees.

That lawsuit is the second one filed against the university in light of a hazing scandal within the football program and allegations of a toxic environment within the baseball program.

“The lawsuit also lists the university, its board of trustees and former president Morton Schapiro as defendants,” a report from ESPN read. “The player filed anonymously, but the lawsuit says he was a member of the team from 2018 through 2022.

“His attorneys, Patrick Salvi and Parker Stinar, said they have spoken to other former Northwestern players and expect additional football players and Northwestern athletes from other sports to join the lawsuit in the coming days and weeks.”

Northwestern completed its investigation into the football program earlier this month and initially suspended Fitzgerald for two weeks without pay. A few days later, though, Schill reassessed his decision and ultimately fired Fitzgerald for cause.

That led the university to promote defensive coordinator David Braun — who was the defensive coordinator at North Dakota State until this past January — to interim head coach. Neither Gragg nor Schill have publicly spoken about the situation and have only communicated through email and letters. Braun also hasn’t spoken publicly, but is set to take the podium at Big Ten Media Days on July 26.

After Fitzgerald’s firing, Northwestern fired head baseball coach Jim Foster after a report from 670 The Score detailed the allegations of a toxic environment. Fifteen players entered the transfer portal after this season, and the university promoted assistant Brian Anderson to interim head coach.