When Tommy McClelland became McNeese State's athletic director in 2008, the then-26-year-old became the youngest Division I athletic director in the nation. Five years later, when he was hired at Louisiana Tech, McClelland became the youngest athletic director at an FBS football school.
So McClelland hiring a 23-year-old women's basketball coach was not that surprising.
"Did you hear the joke about what the young guy said to the younger guy?" McClelland said at the time. "Need a job?"
No jokes are being made at Louisiana Tech on Friday. Summitt, the son of legendary former Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt, announced his resignation Thursday due to an inappropriate relationship with one of his players.
"I am profoundly disappointed in myself for engaging in a relationship that has negatively affected the people I love, respect and care about the most," Summitt said in a statement. "My hope, plans and prayers are to repair those relationships. I am appreciative of the opportunity I was given to coach at Louisiana Tech.
"I am heartbroken that my time has ended in Ruston, but because of my respect for the institution, it is best that I resign. I am hopeful the media and the public will respect the privacy of my family and me as we deal with this difficult situation I have caused."
Summitt was a walk-on with the Tennessee men's basketball team from 2010-2012, playing for Bruce Pearl and Cuonzo Martin. He then served as an assistant coach for the women's team at Marquette before landing the Louisiana Tech job. He was barely older than some of his seniors upon his hire.
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And that closeness in age may be an even bigger curse than the public statements suggest. According to the SB Nation blog Swish Appeal, multiple sources have informed the site that Summitt's inappropriate relationship resulted in a player being pregnant.
Swish Appeal did not reveal the name of the player, but the Internet is pointing at Brooke Pumroy, a senior who transferred from Marquette.
As these rumors swirl, a story on Pumroy's transfer to Louisiana Tech, in the midst of Summitt's hire, has resurfaced, notably this passage:
Enter Marquette assistant coach Tyler Summitt.
"I spent so much time with Coach Tyler, like two hours a day watching and learning the vocabulary and watching other players," Pumroy said. "There was so much extra time I had to spend doing that stuff. I was literally the only point guard we had when I got there so I had to learn."
A young point guard learning from a young assistant coach, countless hours mentoring through film study and more.
"Brooke and I have been developing a relationship for almost four years now," Summitt said. "The fact she had to be our starting point guard at Marquette as freshman and sophomore against top talent forced us to have a lot of 1-on-1 time learning how to handle the role."
Pumroy and junior Ashley Santos both made the move from Marquette, but the rumors focus on Pumroy. Summitt deleted both his Facebook and Twitter accounts and concluded his statement by specifically asked for the privacy of his family in this matter. Summitt wed AnDe Ragsdale, his high school sweetheart, in June 2013.
For Pat Summitt and Tommy McClelland, two respected individuals in their industry, this is a dark time. For Tyler Summitt, his time as a basketball coach may be over for good.
