Randy Sanders’ tenure as the coach at East Tennessee State is off to a rocky start, as he was reprimanded and docked a week of pay this week for an incident that happened in practice.

According to Sports Illustrated, Sanders slapped a player’s helmet back on March 30, causing the player to become upset and storm off the practice field.

Sanders then reported his actions to the school’s athletic director, who decided on the letter of reprimand and pay forfeiture as punishment. Sanders released a statement about the incident:

“Last week, I responded to a situation with poor judgment towards the end of practice,” Sanders said in a statement released by the university. “I immediately apologized to the player directly involved and to my team, and contacted my athletic director to explain everything that happened. Since that time, I have cooperated freely and fully with the university and its review of the situation. I accept the decision by the university and recognize that through my role I have an obligation to lead by example.”

The report states that the player involved in the incident is still on the team, and that Sanders has apologized for his actions.

Sanders replaced Carl Torbush, who retired back in December. He has served as an assistant at Florida State, Tennessee and Kentucky, among other schools.