Editor’s note: This article contains language that may be disturbing or offensive.

This article has been updated to include new information.

Tyler Wright, the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for New Mexico State football, has come under fire for more than 150 social media posts filled with derogatory language aimed at Africans, African Americans, women, Hispanics, and the LGBTQ+ community. These posts are dated back over ten years to his time as a student and football player at Tarleton State.

In response to a report by the Las Cruces Sun-News from the YSL News NETWORK, NMSU Athletics Director Mario Moccia announced that Wright will “no longer be with the team” while the situation is reviewed.

An investigation of Wright’s posts on X (formerly known as Twitter) revealed a number of insensitive remarks, including one where he suggested Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony “should be a college coach” as he had “thousands of black kids to do what he said.” Furthermore, Wright mentioned that he would “beat” a roommate if that person was LGBTQ+ and used a racial slur when announcing his vacation in Jamaica.

Wright did not reply to multiple requests for comments from the Las Cruces Sun-News on Friday. Initially, Moccia claimed he was “unaware” of Wright’s posts but later clarified that Wright would no longer be part of the team during the investigation. Head coach Tony Sanchez and a university athletics department spokesman also refrained from commenting.

A spokesperson from New Mexico State University confirmed that the institution is aware of the posts and is actively investigating the situation.

The controversial posts date back to 2011-2014, a period when Wright was a wide receiver at Tarleton State. His LinkedIn profile and NMSU athletics biography indicate that he became a football intern there in 2015. During his four years playing for Tarleton, he contributed to the team’s achievement of co-championships in the Lone Star Conference in 2013 with 432 receiving yards.

Wright’s X account, which now goes by the handle @CoachWrightNMSU, was created in July 2010 while he was a student at Granbury High School in Granbury, Texas. The account bio reflects his current role with the Aggies, displaying imagery and logos associated with the school alongside the hashtag #AggiesUp, next to a photo of him in school gear holding a football. This timeline aligns with his coaching career, featuring posts from his stints at Permian High School (2015-2018), UT-Permian Basin (2018-2019), TCU (2019-2021), and New Mexico State (2021-present).

The posts include almost 100 derogatory comments about LGBTQ+ individuals, over 60 discussions regarding Joseph Kony—many of which feature racist remarks about Black individuals—at least a dozen posts denigrating women, nine posts perpetuating stereotypes about Hispanics and Latinos, and five instances of racial slurs referring to Black people.

Posts that could be interpreted as racist, sexist, or homophobic seem to have stopped when Wright began coaching at Permian High School in September 2015.

Even though his last personal post was on July 31, Wright has continued to share over 150 posts from other accounts since that date as of Friday evening.

Wright is currently in his third season with the Aggies and his first as the offensive coordinator. This season, he is managing an offense that ranks near the bottom in both yards and points per game among FBS teams.

Wright was originally brought on by former New Mexico State coach Jerry Kill as a tight ends coach and special teams coordinator in 2022, after they worked together at TCU from 2020-2021. He was promoted to offensive coordinator in January 2024 under new head coach Sanchez.

His annual salary rose from $70,000 to $200,000 on February 1, and his contract—which includes potential bonuses of up to $85,000 per year—extends through June 2026. The contract stipulates that he can be terminated for actions deemed to bring him into “public disrepute, scandal or ridicule,” and for conduct that goes against “prevailing social mores and values,” which may impact NMSU’s reputation.

The contract, shared with the YSL News Sports Network on May 31, had yet to be signed by Wright as per the trace of all parties involved, with the last completion noted on March 12.

Wright was recognized as an up-and-coming talent in coaching, being selected for the 2024 American Football Coaches Association’s 35 under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute, which aims to nurture future leaders within the coaching community.

On its website, NMSU publishes a commitment statement regarding equity, inclusion, and diversity: “New Mexico State University is a proud land-grant, space-grant, and Hispanic Serving Institution located in the borderlands and Tribal lands regions. With a focus on equity and inclusion, NMSU is committed to practices that embrace the diversity of our students, staff, faculty, and the communities we serve through outreach, research, and teaching.”

The Aggies (1-3) are set to face New Mexico (0-4) at home on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.

Controversial Posts Relating to Joseph Kony, Africans, and African Americans

Wright posted

From 2012 to 2014, there were over 60 mentions of Kony, with most of them occurring between March 7-8, 2012, coinciding with the release of the “Kony 2012” documentary.

Kony established the Lord’s Resistance Army in 1987, which the United Nations and the U.S. State Department classify as a terrorist organization. He has faced accusations from multiple governments regarding the kidnapping of children to serve as soldiers and in sexual slavery, with reports indicating that his forces displaced around 2 million people from 1986 to 2009, as reported by the U.N.

Wright’s posts included commentary on Kony’s violence and child kidnappings, varying from inappropriate jokes and humor about Kony’s war crimes to racial stereotypes.

Wright also labeled Kony as the “most influential person of the last 20 years” and referred to him as “mr. population control” (sic). He described him as a “principle” (sic) because “Black kids see him often.”

Additionally, he seemed to take pleasure in Kony’s acts of violence and the crimes that led to Kony’s indictment by the International Criminal Court, stating he’s “knockin Africans down like bowling pins” (sic).

In a separate post, Wright mentioned that the surge of Kony-related posts stemmed from his goal of “trying to tweet one time for every kony kid” (sic).

In 2020, amidst the protests following George Floyd’s murder by a police officer in Minneapolis, Wright posted two statements that indicated a shift in his perspective. On May 26, he wrote, “Humans are humans regardless of skin color or background and deserve to be treated as such. We must do better, support each other’s goals and love one another.” He also shared a black square for Blackout Tuesday on June 2, which was intended as a collective response to racism and police brutality.

Comments about Hispanics

Wright has made numerous disparaging comments about Hispanic and Latino individuals, even calling himself the “Whitest Mexican (sic)” in a post from May 2012.

In December 2011, he posted two messages that included racial stereotypes about Hispanics, using profane language to express frustration about teaching them English, and referring to them watching adult videos during their lunch as “classic.” He identified those individuals as Mexican in the posts.

In April 2012, he made a crude comment about Hispanics, saying, “Oiled up and dark! lookin like a Mexican” (sic). In December 2013, he referred to a group of Mexicans as a “Comanche town hall meeting.”

Hispanics and Latinos make up the majority of Las Cruces, with 60.33% of the city’s population identifying as such, according to the 2020 U.S. Census.

Use of homophobic language and derogatory comments toward LGBTQ+ individuals

Wright employed homophobic slurs in multiple posts, including a commonly used slur in its full and abbreviated forms.

Between 2011 and 2013, he utilized the shorthand version of the slur six times. He directed the longer version at friends during a November 2012 post discussing the “Madden NFL” video game.

From entering college in the fall of 2011 to 2014, he used the term “gay” 73 times to describe friends, advertising, websites, clothing, and music acts, including the country band Rascal Flatts, whom he labeled the “epitome of gay” in a May 2012 post.

Wright also reposted another four-letter homophobic slur eight times from 2012 to 2013, mostly to describe friends.

He made a transphobic comment regarding transgender women in March 2012, making inappropriate remarks about their bodies.

Comments regarding women

Wright’s posts have included language that belittles and reinforces negative stereotypes about women.

In March 2012, he stated that women who “can’t make a sandwich” should work on their sexual skills instead. He also shared a post in July 2012 from another user that deemed women’s sports a “joke.” Additionally, in October 2012, he humorously claimed he would dress as laundry for Halloween because “women love laundry.”

In September 2013, he described women that are “passed around” as “contagious” in a post. In August 2013, he commented that those with a “naked girl silhouette sticker” on their car are “dubs,” referring to their wins.

Use of other insensitive language

Wright has used and shared a well-known slur directed at Black individuals. He shared a post from an account that has since been deactivated, where he was referred to by this term, and he also used it himself in a post announcing his vacation to Jamaica in 2013.

In a May 2013 post, he referred to girls at La Vega High School in Bellmead, Texas, using the term “ghetto,” a town where Black individuals represent the second-largest ethnic group at 18.8%, according to the 2020 U.S. Census.

Furthermore, Wright employed a common slur for individuals with learning disabilities in a May 2013 post concerning a girlfriend he seemed to have at that time.