Defensive back Andre Kates to leave IU

IU senior defensive back Andre Kates won’t return to school and is seeking a transfer, he told the IDS Thursday.

Kates, who was dismissed from the team last year for posting derogatory comments about former coach Bill Lynch on Twitter, practiced with the team last spring and appeared to be on his way back. He seemed to be working hard, constantly saying, “This is going to be my redemption year.”

But things soured of late and Kates said he felt like it was time to move on.

“With all that stuff with Lynch, I just felt like I had a bullseye on my back,” he said. “If I did one thing wrong, I was gone. I wasn’t about to go through that again.”

Kates said he wasn’t welcomed back into the locker room the way he thought he would be, and his decision to move on is a “business decision.” He said he would like to transfer to a school in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Kates, a former junior college player of the year, was expected to help bolster Lynch’s secondary last season. But after he struggled early, Kates rarely saw the field. He took to Twitter to complain about Lynch, claiming an assistant coach wanted him to start but Lynch wouldn’t allow him to.

Kates said he will return to Bloomington to collect his things on Monday and then will start looking for a new school.