Hazing and Aggies Fire Coach Greg Heiar

When we hear other individuals talking about hazing, the first things that usually comes to mind are sororities and fraternities. It’s not limited to just fraternal orders or sororities.

However, hazing has been a problem in athletics for a long period of time.  “Hazing,” as defined by the NCAA, is “any act committed against someone joining or becoming a member or maintaining membership in any organization that is humiliating, intimidating or demeaning, or endangers the health and safety of the person.”

 Even though hazing has existed for a long period of time, the recent uprising of social media has allowed the public to take a look into what is occurring within athletics and other team organizations. High schools, colleges, and legislatures have enacted policies in hopes of decreasing the occurrence of hazing; however, they have not been as successful as they hoped. 

Given the clear need for a stronger hold on athletics and other team organizations, schools as well as legislators have begun to enact policies and laws prohibiting hazing. Forty-three states have made hazing illegal. In the other seven states that have not explicitly made hazing illegal, it is harder for individuals to prove a civil or a criminal case.

In addition to legislative actions, athletic programs such as the NCAA have explicitly created anti-harassment policies that must be followed by colleges that are part of the NCAA. Even after these policies and state laws have been put in place, however, high school and college athletes continue to be hazed. 

Even if the amount of hazing incidents has decreased due to the increase in anti-hazing policies and laws, it continues to be a problem that student-athletes have to deal with.

When attempting to deter hazing, high schools and colleges should work to create other activities student-athletes and other group organizations may use to foster team bonding.

By providing students with other activities or methods that foster team bonding, student-athletes will be less likely to think that hazing is the only way to further team building.  In addition to providing other team building activities, it is important to ensure all individuals understand the policies put in place by the institution as well as the laws implemented by the state and the gravity of the consequences if they are found to be in violation of the policy or state law.

 By doing these two things, it is possible to decrease the amount of hazing in high schools and colleges and prevent the boomerang from coming back. New Mexico State University is embroiled in the scandal of hazing but has taken fast and effective action. 

Handpicked to be the architect of the next great chapter in the New Mexico State University men’s basketball program, Greg Heiar has been fired less than 11 months into his rocky tenure with the Aggies.

Following a closed-door board of regents meeting Tuesday night in Las Cruces, NMSU Chancellor Dan Arvizu authorized the immediate dismissal of Heiar after allegations of hazing with sexual connotations among his players emerged over the last several days.

“Earlier today, I made the decision to terminate men’s basketball coach Greg Heiar,” Arvizu said in a prepared statement. “Director of Athletics Mario Moccia informed him of my decision this afternoon. This comes after learning of hazing allegations involving student-athletes on our men’s basketball team.”

The remainder of Heiar’s staff is still under contract.

“Through an expansive review and full investigation, we will work to ensure we fully understand what happened here, and that those found responsible are held accountable,” Arvizu said. “We will also ensure that support systems are in place to prevent this from happening again. Any further decisions regarding the remainder of the coaching staff will be made after additional investigations are concluded.”

Arvizu initially suspended the team’s daily operations and put Heiar, 47, and his staff on paid administrative leave Feb. 10. Arvizu then canceled the remainder of the season Sunday after a damning police report filed by one of the players outlined some of the allegations.

The rare move to halt a team’s season was a bombshell to the college sporting world. Arvizu hinted at Heiar’s dismissal in a statement last weekend, saying, “It’s time for this program to reset.”

In the report, the unnamed player said three of his teammates had been hazing him for several months, both at home in the team’s locker room and on the road. He said the most recent incident was Feb. 6 when his teammates approached him in the Aggies' locker room and removed his clothes, making contact with his buttocks and scrotum.

The victim told police he felt he had no choice but to comply because he was outnumbered three to one.

The report indicates two counts of criminal sexual contact and one count each of harassment and false imprisonment. No charges have been filed, but a source said the matter is under review by the Doña Ana County District Attorney's Office.

The firing also comes after another high-profile case that Arvizu said is unrelated to the hazing. In November 2022, NMSU basketball player Mike Peake shot and killed a University of New Mexico student during an altercation on the UNM campus.

Peake told police he left the Aggies’ hotel after curfew with the intent of having sex with a female UNM student he’d been chatting with online. When he and the female approached a door at the Coronado Hall residence center, three men assaulted Peake, leading to a shootout between Peake and 19-year-old Brandon Travis.

Travis died at the scene while Peake, who was shot in the leg, was taken to the hospital by three of his teammates, who also snuck out of the team’s hotel after curfew.

Peake has not been charged, but he was placed on indefinite suspension in December while the other players faced one-game suspensions. It led to UNM and NMSU canceling both basketball games this season.

NMSU has also struggled badly on the court. Coming off an NCAA tournament appearance and a first-round victory under former coach Chris Jans, the Aggies were 9-15 before Arvizu shut down the program. The Western Athletic Conference has declared their final six games as forfeits, ensuring a last-place finish in what is the school’s final year in the league.

NMSU is slated to join Conference USA in all sports this summer.

This hazing incident comes during a critical time in the Legislative session, as NMSU is lobbying for $16.8 million in capital outlay funds for improvements to its athletic department. On Monday, the school’s football team was honored on the floor of the Senate. Moccia was expected to join Aggies football coach Jerry Kill and three players during a brief ceremony but was a no-show.

Heiar initially was signed by Moccia to a five-year contract with an annual base salary of $300,000. It was not immediately clear how the school would handle the remainder of the contract.

A news conference has been scheduled Wednesday morning to discuss Heiar’s termination.

“As I’ve stated previously, hazing has no place on our campus, and those found responsible will be held accountable for their actions,” Arvizu said. “I am committed to the safety and well-being of all members of our campus community, as well as to the integrity of our university.”

Hired March 27 of last year, Heiar was plucked out of the junior college ranks after leading Northwest Florida State College to a national title. He had never been a Division I head coach but had served as an assistant to some of the NCAA’s most controversial coaches.

During his introductory press conference in the Pan American Center, he referenced his past experiences for helping shape his coaching career.

He worked for Larry Eustachy at Southern Mississippi from 2009-11, then Gregg Marshall at Wichita State (2011-17) and Will Wade at LSU (2017-20). All have checkered histories: Eustachy was fired at Iowa State in 2003 for violating a morals clause in his contract after he was photographed with young women after road games.

He was hired at Southern Miss the following year and brought Heiar on as an assistant five years later.

Heiar was part of Marshall’s staff at Wichita State when the Shockers reached the Final Four in 2013. Marshall resigned under pressure seven years later amid allegations that he verbally and physically abused his players over the course of several years.

From there it was onto LSU, where Wade was caught committing numerous NCAA recruiting violations on an FBI wiretap. Wade was fired in 2022 when the NCAA announced it was investigating the program.

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