In a private meeting with players on Thursday, John O’Connor resigned as head coach of the Holy Family University basketball team.
O’Connor made national headlines after a video of a Jan. 25 incident where he got into it physically with a student became public.
Sophomore Matt Kravchuk claims that he injured his wrist got a bloody nose and bruised lip after the first-year coach grabbed him and pushed him to ground during a practice drill.
A police report filed on Feb. 11 also states that O’Connor grabbed Kravchuk, elbowed him in the face and gave him a bloody nose and bruised lip.
After the attack, O'Connor allegedly cursed at Kravchuk and tossed him out of practice at the Northeast Philly college, said Kravchuk's attorney Jack Cohen last week.
O’Connor was called a “great guy” and “intense” by Sixers forward Thaddeus Young. He was an assistant coach when Young attended Georgia Tech.
O’Connor will not face criminal charges for the alleged attack, Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams says.
The video of the basketball practice shows O’Connor knocking Kravchuk to the ground.
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"I think it's reprehensible... what this coach did to Matthew was not only uncalled for but I believe illegal and caused serious injury," Cohen said.
But the District Attorney does not think the incident was illegal. According to the District Attorney’s statement Thursday, the D.A.’s private criminal complaints unit has determined that the event does not constitute a prosecutable offense.
O’Connor spoke to radio host Michael Smerconish on 1210 WPHT Wednesday.
“Did I push the line a little bit? No question,” O’Connor said.
He said he was amazed at how his 25-year reputation “vanished up in smoke in 30 seconds.”
Both O'Connor and Kravchuk appeared on "Good Morning America" on Thursday for an interview. It was the first time they were together since the day of the incident. Repeatedly, O'Connor apologizes and said what he did was "unintentional" and an "accident."
Towards the end of the interview, O'Connor turned and talked directly to Kravchuk.
"This was an accident, I was just trying to make us a better team, make us more competitive. In doing so an accident happened," said O'Connor.
"It was unintentional by me and I'm really sorry that it happened. If I could take it back I certainly would."
Kravchuk refused to accept his apology however.
"To be honest, it's kind of hard to accept your apology. You claim its justified and you claimed you weren't crossing the line," said Kravchuk.
"Right now I'm injured and I can't play. I can't play for you anymore. As your player I'm supposed to be able to respect you and I don't feel like I can do that anymore.
You can view the full interview here:
