Coach, player and officials discuss incident that led to dismissal

The use of profanity and physical contact with a Greenbacks football player is at the heart of an Aug. 30 incident that led to the firing of second-year Greenbacks coach Tommy Clemmer, according to statements obtained by Knox News from Loudon County Schools through a public records request.

Clemmer’s behavior crossed the line of what is acceptable for Loudon County Schools, leading to his dismissal on Sept. 3, four days after Greenback’s 48-0 loss to Whitwell in Week 2 of the TSSAA football season. He is accused of yelling profanities and pushing a player, according to statements provided by the school system.

Clemmer said in his statement that he has “never been accused of putting his hands on a child” in his 35 years of coaching. He also wrote that he was “deeply sorry” for the situation.

Knox News sent Clemmer two emails requesting an interview. He responded by email saying to contact Brian Nichols and left the phone number for a law firm called Ford, Nichols & Frye. Two messages were left for Nichols.

In Greenback’s Sept. 4 press release, it said Clemmer’s firing was based on failure to meet an expectation in Loudon County Board of Education policy that says coaches, like teachers, must “create a positive atmosphere” and “demonstrate courtesy and respect for all students.”

Clemmer was hired in March 2023 after serving as an assistant from 2015-21. He coached 14 games, including two this season in his first opportunity to lead a program. He finished with a 5-9 record. Greenbacks assistant Gray Williams has been the interim coach since Clemmer was fired.

What happened in the Greenback-Whitwell game on August 30

According to a statement from Deputy School Resource Officer Bobby Woods provided by Loudon County Schools, the player had an incident with the referee that occurred around 8:12 p.m. during a game Greenback lost 48-0 on Aug. 30. When the player returned to the sideline, Clemmer “became upset and started yelling at (name redacted) and pushing him and poking his finger to get him to go to the locker room,” Woods said.

Clemmer yelled at the player in the locker room to return his equipment. The player and Clemmer both used profanity and Woods asked Clemmer to leave the room, which he did to return to the field, according to Woods’ statement.

Kenny Palmer, assistant school resource officer, said in his statement that he saw Clemmer push the player “while expressing his displeasure at (name redacted)’s disrespect.” Palmer said he stayed outside the locker room because the player’s upset mother and father were there.

“I tried to keep them out of the locker room and calm them down while other deputies handled the situation inside,” Palmer said.

The statement of the player involved

Here is the full statement from the player involved: “I walked up to him (Clemmer) after he threw the flag. I called him Bro, then he started yelling at me and told me to go inside. We went inside. He seemed to have calmed down. I said ‘Dude’ again. He freaked out, threw his helmet and cursed at me. I did too and that’s about all I remember.”

Tommy Clemmer’s account of the incident

Clemmer said a referee came to him several times to tell him a player was arguing with the officials and using foul language. After a third time, two flags were thrown and the referee came to tell him that was the last time.

Clemmer said the player told the referees, “They were the worst referees ever.” He approached the player to remove him from the game to avoid an ejection.

“It was a very frustrating game for all the players,” he said.

Clemmer told the player that his actions would not change the decisions made but would instead make things worse. The player responded by saying that Clemmer was “a piece of trash, get that bad word out of my face, man, nobody wants to play for you.”

“I said, ‘I’m not your brother, I’m your coach,'” Clemmer told the player, who kept repeating the same thing. He took him off the field and into the stadium.

At the stadium, Clemmer said assistants Woods and Bailey Brockwell were present. The player repeated his remarks and Clemmer said, “I don’t know how you think this is going to help the team.”

Clemmer said in his statement that the player’s mother arrived upset, “yelling at me.” He was asked to return to the field, which he did to finish his workout.

Clemmer said he had a good relationship with the player’s mother and family, for example accompanying him to training.

“I’ve been his biggest fan since he was in eighth grade,” Clemmer said.

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In his statement, Clemmer described himself as a “lively” coach when good or bad things happen. He said he interacts with players by “slapping them on the shoulder pads or on the buttocks like a lot of coaches do.”

In his statement, he said he had “no idea that the mother was saying I put my hands on him in that manner” and that he was never accused of doing so. Clemmer said no one from the school administration spoke to him during or after the Aug. 30 game.

He said he was with two deputies in the locker room and they would have intervened if he had “crossed the line.”

The last part of Clemmer’s statement was his apology.

“I am at Greenback because I love the school, the kids and the community and I want to help Greenback in any way I can. If the mother feels I owe her or her son an apology, I am deeply sorry. I never meant for this to be taken out of context. I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused everyone. I appreciate all the parents who are involved in their children’s sports.”

Toyloy Brown III is a sports reporter for Knox News. Email [email protected]. On X, formerly Twitter, @TJ3rd_.