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Lincoln Riley: Oklahoma won't employ domestic abusers

Trevor Ruszkowski / USA TODAY Sports

Head coach Lincoln Riley made it clear Friday that Oklahoma won't employ anyone on his staff who commits acts of domestic violence.

"There's obviously no room for any of that on our staff by you or one of your family members," the second-year coach told reporters, according to Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman. "If that happens here, they won't work here. They know that. We have good people. It definitely is a good chance to remind them because it's obviously a thing, something like that, it doesn't just affect you, but so many people."

Riley made his stance known publicly in the wake of the fallout at Ohio State, where head coach Urban Meyer is under investigation for his handling of fired wide receivers coach Zach Smith. Meyer has insisted he followed school protocol and reported domestic incidents he became aware of to Ohio State administrators.

Riley said he's already met with his staff over his policy on domestic abuse.

"It's something that our school, our university, with our Title IX department, our administration, they do a good job of educating us on that," he said. "It's something that we have talked about beforehand. It wasn't anything new.

"But it was a good chance just to remind guys that whether it’s you, whether it’s one of your family members, anybody involved in anything, we have to report it. We're mandatory reporters. There's no secrets in this world anymore. We have to be honest with each other. We have to communicate."

Oklahoma has faced backlash in the past for awarding scholarships to players with a history of domestic violence. Riley didn't address whether his approach to paid employees will extend to student-athletes.

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