Haywood receives trial date

Former Pitt football head coach Michael Haywood appeared in an Indiana court Tuesday morning for… Former Pitt football head coach Michael Haywood appeared in an Indiana court Tuesday morning for an initial hearing to decide on future jury trial dates.

According to an administrator in Judge Jane Woodward Miller’s office, March 10 is the official date for the trial. Haywood is charged with domestic battery, a felony in Indiana, where the alleged crime occured. Haywood pleaded not guilty to the offense earlier this month.

Pitt’s decision to fire Haywood has created a difficult situation not only for the football team but for the university as a whole.

The team lost the majority of its prospective recruits, and Pitt alumni have threatened to withhold financial donations if athletic director Steve Pederson remains at the university.

Pitt’s coaching drama officially began on Dec. 7, when another former head coach, Dave Wannstedt, resigned under pressure. The university hired Haywood nine days later. About two weeks after that, Pitt fired Haywood upon hearing he had been arrested by police on a “domestic battery with child present” charge in South Bend, Ind.

Haywood was taken to the St. Joseph County Jail, where he remained for about a day until he was released on $1,000 bond.

His defense attorney, Andre B. Gammage, was out of the office on Tuesday and unable to be reached for comment.

Haywood could face up to three years in prison and a $10,000 fine if convicted on the charge, which is considered a class D felony under Indiana law.