Ex-Stanford football coach Troy Taylor sues ESPN for defamation

Troy Taylor is going after the Worldwide Leader following his Stanford ouster. 

The former head coach of the Cardinal football team has filed a lawsuit against ESPN and reporter Xuan Thai, alleging that he was defamed in a story that preceded his firing in March by Stanford general manager Andrew Luck.

The suit claims that Thai published “repeated defamatory statements about Taylor, knowing full well that the statements were false, for the purpose of smearing Taylor’s reputation and injuring him in his profession.”

The story in question was published by ESPN in mid-March and alleged Taylor “bullied and belittled female athletic staffers.”

In the report, Thai cited two previously undisclosed third-party investigations in 2023 and 2024 that arose after “multiple employees filed official complaints regarding Taylor’s behavior.”

Taylor’s suit also called attention to a follow-up story published in April, a month after his firing, that stated Stanford’s initial investigation began solely off one complaint and that the investigator found “insufficient evidence” regarding the complaint.

Though that element is true, as ESPN noted “the investigation was initially launched in response to a single complainant,” the report also stated, “The investigation ultimately included interviews with at least 20 Stanford athletic department staffers regarding four allegations against Taylor.”

Luck, a Stanford legend and two-time Heisman Trophy runner-up, was hired as the program’s general manager in November 2024, months before ESPN’s initial report on Taylor dropped.

The former Colts quarterback was allegedly privy to some details surrounding the Taylor matter before accepting the job, The Athletic previously reported. He did not take any action until the ESPN story was published.

“It has been clear that certain aspects of the program need change,” Luck said in March. “Additionally, in recent days, there has been significant attention to Stanford investigations in previous years related to Coach Taylor. After continued consideration, it is evident to me that our program needs a reset. In consultation with university leadership, I no longer believe that Coach Taylor is the right coach to lead our football program.”

Taylor failed to turn Stanford around in his two seasons as head coach, leading the Cardinal to woeful 3-9 records in back-to-back seasons.

Prior to his stint with the Cardinal, he led FCS program Sacramento State to playoff appearances in each of his three seasons.