Kelvin Jefferson led men's basketball team at Gannon University for four years when he was let go in 2023. He claimed breach of contract, which downtown Erie school denied.
The former men's basketball coach at Gannon University has settled his lawsuit over his firing, ending a dispute that moved from the basketball court to Erie County Common Pleas Court.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The former coach, Kelvin Jefferson, sued Gannon in April 2023, 10 days after the 4,200-student downtown Erie university terminated his contract in late March following a 3-23 record in 2022-23.
Jefferson, who coached the Division II Golden Knights for four years, claimed breach of contract. Gannon denied the claims and asked a judge to rule in its favor.
The suit was still in its pretrial stages when it settled. Jefferson's lawyers, John Mizner and Joseph Caulfield, ended the litigation on Jan. 31 by filing a notice that the case was settled and discontinued.
The notice provides no information about the settlement. Mizner said the deal prohibits him from disclosing financial details.
“Coach Jefferson is greatly pleased with the manner in which Gannon University settled his claim and he wishes the Knights continued success on and off the court,”
A spokesman for Gannon said the university would have no comment.
Lawsuit was over a buyout of ex-coach
Jefferson, 52, now lives in North Carolina, where he is specializing in fundraising, according to his LinkedIn account. His salary at Gannon was $106,184 a year when the school fired him.
Gannon fired Jefferson a year into what he considered his four-year contract extension. The terms of the agreement became a central part of his lawsuit.
Jefferson never disputed in the suit that Gannon could fire him. But he claimed that Gannon had to buy him out. He said the termination of him as coach still required that Gannon honor the rest of his extension, a period of three years and three months.
As Jefferson was let go, according to the suit, Gannon asked him to sign a release in which it would have paid him through June 30, 2023, in exchange for him agreeing not sue for breach of contract or other claims.
Jefferson refused to sign the release, and refused Gannon's offer that he resign instead of getting fired, the suit claimed. It claimed Jefferson "chose not to resign, having done absolutely nothing wrong nor breached any of his obligations towards Gannon University."
Wins and losses part of legal fight
The suit claimed that nothing in what Jefferson said was a contract required him to achieve a certain record for him to remain the men's basketball coach at Gannon.
In response, Gannon's lawyers, Jamie Schumacher and Lauren Holler, argued that the university committed no breach of contract when it fired Jefferson. Gannon said he was an at-will employee hired via an appointment letter rather than via a standard contract.
The lawyers also said the university was within its rights to consider wins and losses in firing Jefferson. They detailed the reasons that Gannon said led to his termination.
"There is no basis to suggest that a win/loss record is not a factor in the performance of a college coach," the lawyers said in their filing that answered the lawsuit. The filing said "Gannon University terminated Jefferson for legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons."
"Jefferson struggled with the Gannon University Men's Basketball team both on and off the court for a variety of reasons," according to the filing.
The "performance deficiencies included not only poor performance based upon his 3 and 23 season, but his ongoing sub-par performance" in previous seasons, according to the filing. "In addition, multiple players have entered the transfer portal indicating poor retention of student athletes and there were issues with student-athlete behavior.
"Further, metrics for team performance such as team GPA and service participation further illustrate less than satisfactory completion of position responsibilities."
Jefferson came to Gannon from Virginia
In his four seasons at Gannon, Jefferson went 41-53 with two Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference tournament appearances in the three years the tournament was held. Gannon's 3-23 record in 2022-23 included 3-19 in PSAC play.
Jefferson's teams finished 14-13 in his first season, in 2019-20, and in his third season, in 2021-22. The team finished 10-4 in 2020-21, during the pandemic.
Jefferson arrived at Gannon in 2019 after serving as an assistant with men's basketball programs at Division I Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. He succeeded coach John Reilly, the winningest men's basketball coach in Gannon history. Reilly was fired after the Golden Knights went 11-18 overall and 9-12 in the PSAC in 2018-19.
Gannon in April hired a new men's basketball coach, Jordan Fee, then 34. He grew up in Grove City and had been the associate head coach of the men's basketball team at the Nova Southeastern University in Davie, Florida, near Fort Lauderdale. The Nova Southeastern team won the Division II national championship in March 2023 and finished 36-0 overall.
Fee's Golden Knights are enjoying a high winning percentage in his first season. The team, filled with transfers and new players, was 19-2 overall as of Saturday and in first place in the PSAC West at 13-2.
Original Article By: Ed Palattella at epalattella@timesnews.com. Follow him on X @ETNpalattella.