Football coach fired for rejecting vaccine

Washington State University’s athletic director announced the firing of head coach Nick Rolovich and four assistants because they were not vaccinated against COVID-19 by the state deadline on Monday. Rolovich had previously applied for a religious exemption that was denied. Because the university fired him for cause, they do not have to honor the rest of his $3 million yearly contract through 2025. The defensive coordinator will serve as acting coach starting on Saturday and the school is looking for immediate assistant replacements.

Why did he refuse? Rolovich said he would not get the COVID-19 vaccine for private reasons when the mandate was announced in August. He wore a mask to all games and said he would comply with other state requirements. Meanwhile, ESPN reporter Allison Williams, who covers college football and basketball, said she is leaving her job because of the company’s vaccine mandate. She said she asked for an exception because she does not want to get the vaccine while she and her husband are trying to conceive a second child, but ESPN’s parent company, Disney, denied her request.

Dig deeper: Read Steve West’s report in Liberties about religious exemptions for student athletes.