
In the aftermath of Kansas State's ugly 91-62 loss to Cincinnati this past week, head coach Jerome Tang went on a now-viral rant where he absolutely ripped his team to shreds and promised that a lot of them would not be back next season.
As it turns out, he will not be back next season, either. Or the rest of this season.
According to multiple reports on Sunday evening, including from Jeff Goodman, The Athletic and ESPN, Kansas State has fired Tang.
Tang was livid following the home loss on Wednesday and did not hold anything back in criticizing his team, going as far to say they did not deserve to wear the uniform.
“These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform. There will be very few of them in it next year,” Tang told reporters. “I’m embarrassed for the university, and I’m embarrassed for our fans, our student section. It is just ridiculous. We’ve got practice at 6 a.m. tomorrow morning, and we will get this thing right. I have no answer and no words.”
According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, Tang is being fired with cause due to a clause in his contract that references him doing anything that brings “public disrepute, embarrassment, ridicule” to the university.
"I am deeply disappointed with the university's decision and strongly disagree with the characterization of my termination," Tang said in a statement provided to ESPN. "I have always acted with integrity and faithfully fulfilled my responsibilities as head coach."
His contract reportedly had a buyout of more than $18M.
Per ESPN sources, Kansas State is firing Jerome Tang for cause. They’ve informed him of this formally tonight. The basis for the for cause firing is language in his contract that references any activity that brings “public disrepute, embarrassment, ridicule” to Kansas State. https://t.co/OFXFG0pq4K
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) February 16, 2026
Tang's rant certainly brought plenty of unwanted attention to the school, while also showing a disturbing lack of accountability on his own part. Maybe the team isn't very good. But as the head coach, he has to take responsibility for its construction and the way it plays. This was his fourth year coaching the team, and his fingerprints should be all over the roster.
If it is not good, there is only one person to blame for that. When that person starts passing the buck on to other people, that is a problem.
Tang's tenure at Kansas State got off to a strong start with a stunning trip to the Elite Eight during the 2022-23 season. They were a three-point loss to Florida Atlantic from reaching the Final Four that year.
The program was never been able to build on that success under Tang, while the record has steadily regressed every year since. Over the past three seasons, Kansas State is just 18-32 in Big 12 conference play, including a 1-11 mark so far this season.
A head coach with an established track record of success, and perhaps even more recent success, might be able to get away with that sort of criticism directed toward his team. But when you are a coach that is working on your third consecutive down year and have never really won anything for the program, it probably will not go as well for you.
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