Gary Patterson on Baylor: 'Not class'

ByABC News
December 1, 2013, 1:16 PM

— -- TCU coach Gary Patterson ripped Baylor counterpart Art Briles on Saturday over events surrounding the ejection of Bears safety and senior captain Ahmad Dixon in the third quarter of the Horned Frogs' 41-38 loss.

Dixon was thrown out by rule after a penalty for targeting Horned Frogs receiver Trevone Boykin, a key turn of events in the game that appeared to ignite a heated exchange between Patterson and Briles on the field.

Patterson addressed the exchange after the game, tempering his response with mentions of respect for Baylor and Briles, who avoided the topic in his news conference.

"To come across the field to me ... he's picking on the wrong guy," Patterson said. "You're not going to come across to me. You can go correct your player, not me.

"If that's what class is, then I don't want to be it."

Dixon will also have to sit out the first half of Baylor's regular-season finale against visiting Texas.

"Here's the bottom line," Patterson said. "No. 6 beats a guy up at the beginning of the season and he doesn't get suspended or anything. He takes a shot. I want him kicked out."

Dixon, who briefly remained on the sideline despite the ejection before leaving, was arrested in September and charged with misdemeanor assault after an apparent altercation at a Waco apartment. The charges are still pending.

"The head coach comes across the field to me, OK? There's a guy laughing in front of the cameras on the sidelines," Patterson said of Dixon. "That's not what I call class.

"So the bottom line is, we're not going to do that. Here's where I live. Gary Patterson lives in Fort Worth, if he's got a problem with me."

But Patterson measured his comments somewhat after his Horned Frogs fell to 4-8, 2-7 in the Big 12 with the loss.

The ninth-ranked Bears, who improved to 10-1 and 7-1 in the Big 12, held off TCU after scoring 21 consecutive points on either side of halftime with just 1 yard from their high-powered offense, bouncing back from a blowout loss at Oklahoma State to maintain their hopes for a share of the conference title.

"I have respect for him. I have respect for his program," Patterson said. "But that guy's been doing that for four years. That's not what I teach my guys. It wasn't funny."

ESPN.com's Jake Trotter and information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.