Cell phone video captured Coach Marlon Dorsey smacking a player with a weightlifting belt. Players claimed Dorsey whipped them when they messed up during practice.
"I took it upon myself to save these young men. I am deeply remorseful of my actions to help our students," Dorsey said in a statement.
A parent of one of the students spoke out on "Good Morning America" on Friday.
"Saving our boys by whipping them is not saving them," said Jason Hubbard, father of one of the basketball players. Hubbard said his son is an honor-roll student.
Dorsey has been suspended.
Parents say school administrators knew what was happening but turned a blind eye.
