Bob Huggins appears to say homophobic slur during radio call-in

IMG_0985by:Griffin McVeigh05/08/23

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Bob Huggins has had a solid offseason with West Virginia, doing well in the NCAA transfer portal ahead of the 2023-2024 season. However, the Hall of Fame head coach is now in trouble after a recent radio call-in appearance in Cincinnati.

Huggins appears to use a homophobic slur when discussing Xavier via Bill Cunningham’s WLW radio show on Monday. The hosts asked Huggins if he had recruited anybody from the Musketeers before rekindling an old memory of a Crosstown Shootout matchup with Cincinnati.

That’s when the use of the slur occurred, with Huggins calling Xavier fans “Catholic f***” after describing them throwing things onto the court.

Awful Announcing was able to gather the audio and pinpoint the exact moment. You can listen to a portion of the radio call-in where Huggins uses the slur here.

Warning the following audio contains graphic language.

Huggins was the Cincinnati head coach for over 15 years, being right in the center of the rivalry with Xavier. On the court, he finished with a .500 record in the Crosstown Shootout, going 8-8. He still has roots in the area, as shown by his radio appearance.

To answer the question the radio hosts asked Huggins, he has not brought anybody from Xavier to West Virginia through the portal. However, the answer he provided will mean a ton of controversy and scrutiny will now surround the program.

While Huggins might be a recently inducted Hall of Fame coach, we will have to wait and see what comes from his actions.

Bob Huggins, West Virginia enjoying nice offseason before call-in incident

Prior to Monday, West Virginia was having quite a nice offseason.

The past two seasons have been disappointing, finishing in the bottom three of the Big 12. While there was an NCAA Tournament appearance this past season, it resulted in a Round of 64 loss to Maryland.

But since then, Huggins has been able to attract nice talent to Morgantown through the portal. Five new faces were expected to join the Mountaineers’ 2023-2024 squad. None have a bigger name than former Arizona guard Kerr Kriisa as anticipation was building around the program.

Now, the future of Huggins has to be in question. At the time of posting, the West Virginia athletic department has not released a statement on the situation. You would have to think there will be steps taken before the season begins this fall.