The University of Kansas was fined $25,000 by the Big 12 conference after it concluded that head football coach Lance Leipold made an ‘inaccurate statement’ regarding a pocket knife discovered on the team’s sideline during a recent game against Texas Tech. The incident, which occurred during the Jayhawks’ 42-17 loss to the Red Raiders on Saturday, initially led to a public inquiry due to Leipold’s claim that a pocket knife had been thrown and struck one of the KU staff members. However, the review video conducted by Texas Tech, which was submitted to the Big 12, revealed that a Kansas student athlete had picked up the knife and immediately handed it to a staff member, effectively refuting Leipold’s account. The Big 12 did not specify which part of Leipold’s statement was deemed inaccurate, but the video evidence cleared the sideline of any involvement of the knife being thrown or hitting any staff member.
Despite the clarification provided by Texas Tech, the Big 12 maintained its ruling, citing Leipold’s comments as an affront to the conference’s integrity and professionalism. Leipold, in a statement, accepted the Big 12’s findings and expressed an acknowledgment of his emotional reaction to the incident, pledging to move forward and focus on completing the season successfully. Furthermore, Texas Tech was also fined $25,000 for allowing fans to throw objects onto the field, a practice that had been a longstanding tradition but was recently outlawed by the school’s governing body. The review noted that Texas Tech did not take adequate measures to prevent or deter the repeated occurrence of this action, which has posed a safety risk. Leipold himself noted that fans had been throwing items on the field for some time and cautioned that eventually, someone might be seriously hurt due to this ongoing issue.