Ohio State Women's Hockey Coach Forced To Resign After Sexually Explicit Comments

Columbus Dispatch- Ohio State began investigating Handrahan after the university received on Nov. 24 an anonymous complaint of sexual harassment involving Handrahan. The complaint came from a faculty member or instructor who said a student-athlete in class had shared that Handrahan made sexually explicit comments to “many” players on the team.

That complaint came a day after an incident at an airport on the way back from a series at North Dakota. Witnesses stated that Handrahan and assistant coach Carson Duggan were “intoxicated and unprofessional” and arrived at the airport smelling of alcohol after missing the team bus to the airport.

According to witnesses in the report, Handrahan made sexual comments or innuendos about female players and their relationships with their boyfriends, and he routinely used sexually explicit or vulgar language during practices and in games. Witnesses said that he occasionally implored his players to “get horny for the puck” during practice, a term that players found inappropriate.

Witnesses also said Handrahan regularly spoke to players in a belittling or condescending tone, and several described him as a “bully.” In one instance, according to the report, a player asked Handrahan to stop yelling at her during a meeting and the coach responded by saying, “I haven’t yelled. Do you want me to show you what yelling is?”



​Nate Handrahan is a middle aged man, and a hockey coach. So when reports of sexually explicit language start making the rounds don't expect me to be shocked. While I agree that he probably needed to step down (be fired), it wasn't his fault for getting hired in the first place. This is like hiring Jerry Sandusky to be your party planner and getting upset when all the boys show up to play laser tag in speedos and shower caps. It's like making Charles Manson your head chef and being outraged when you find a finger in the casserole. Maybe don't make Bill Cosby your bartender, see where I am going with this?

Middle aged white men are prone to corny jokes and inappropriate comments about women. It's not their fault. It's in their DNA. How many times have you been around your father and he's said something creepy that made you place your head firmly in your hands? The difference is that most of the time it happens in an unthreatening situation. Why do you think they have to hold sexual harassment seminars in the workplace? At a certain age the line between social interaction and sexual inappropriateness gets blurred dramatically.

All things considered, "get horny for the puck" isn't that bad. Take into account were dealing with a guy that was apparently intoxicated around a bunch of co-eds, and hasn't had sex with anything but his hand in the last two years, and the comment starts to explain itself. You think Nate was enjoying his life? Pretty sure that his life didn't turn out how he expected. Can't imagine his dream job was to be a women's hockey coach. Cut him some slack for taking out his frustrations with a couple misplaced slips of the tongue. His biggest mistakes were not being drunk ALL the time, and misunderstanding the phrase "the period is over".

And let's not let the ladies Buckeyes off the hook completely on this one. No, they shouldn't have to deal with suggestive comments from their coach. But on the other hand, crying about your hockey coach being a 'bully' is the most feminine thing of all time. You want to play a man's sport then act like that jockstrap is actually protecting something. Hockey coaches yell, it's what they do. Watch '24/7' for me one time ladies. I think intimidation is the first thing you learn as a hockey coach. Fear leads to respect and discipline. If you don't like it, go play field hockey. How many men, coaches or not, can relate to this comment, "I haven't yelled, do you want me to show you what yelling is?" Fucking women. Can't be happy until their coach shares the same menstrual cycle. Hockey is about blood, sweat, and tears, and I'm not talking about the kind that you involuntarily secrete once a month. Grow up ladies. Grow. Up.