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Letters and more Outlook for black coaches in college football not improvingPosted: Tuesday December 24, 2002 12:39 PM
If you’re keeping track, there are 15 newly hired Division 1-A head football coaches -- and one African-American among the bunch, Denver Broncos assistant Karl Dorrell, former offensive coordinator at Colorado and Washington. That means it’ll be a wash come next season, still just four African-Americans among the 117 head coaches. Take out Bobby Williams, fired at Michigan State, and plug Dorrell into the mix at UCLA. As we wrote a few weeks ago, the Black Coaches Association is planning next summer to roll out the Hiring Report Card, alerting football recruits to the hiring practices of individual schools. Is it guaranteed to catch the players’ attention? Perhaps, but not necessarily. An athletic director who just hired a head coach told us players never broached the subject of race when he sought their input. “I had eight or nine kids that I sat and talked with,’’ he says. “Seven were black. Not one of them said, ‘Hire a black coach.’ Not one of them . . . It’s one of those things, ‘Who is the best coach?’ If you got a really outstanding guy, I don’t think it makes any difference.’’ That’s just one man’s opinion, of course. So let’s head to the mailbag and discuss this and other topics.
The answer to getting more black head coaches in college football is fairly simple. First, we need to tell our star black athletes that they don't necessarily have to go to a big football school that's on TV every week in order to get the big NFL paydays on Sunday afternoon. If they are good, they will get drafted regardless of where they go to school. After all, Walter Payton and Jerry Rice didn't go to big football schools. Second, the black community needs to start sending our star Black athletes to colleges and universities that actually practice true diversity in their hiring practices. No, this is not a boycott or economic action. This is looking out for the welfare of our children. Would we send our black children to a college or university that didn't hire black professors? Yes, it's nice to have our black sons play for an Alabama or another big football school on Saturday afternoons. However, by sending our sons to these schools that fail to practice true diversity in their hiring practices, the black community is unwittingly sending a clear message to these schools that we aren't worried about that school's hiring practices. We are telling these schools that it doesn't matter who they can hire; we will continue to send our black athletes to these schools anyway. Knowing this, why should a college or university hire a black head coach?
Four African-American head coaches at the Division 1-A level is inexcusable. So obviously, athletes would be wise to check on a school’s hiring practices before committing to play for a particular program, just like they should familiarize themselves with graduation rates and the like. But does anyone ask about graduation rates?
These schools will hire an African-American coach when they are good and
ready. The track record of African-American coaches is not exactly stellar. Look
at the fiasco at Michigan State. Oklahoma did not return to glory until they
dumped their previous coach (John Blake). And for all the coach of the year
drivel about Tyrone Willingham, the Irish did not even show up against USC. This cost the school millions of dollars. The reality is the BCA is made up of mediocre
coaches and administrators. Let them boycott if they must.
Yeah, and if only Strom Thurmond had captured the White House in ’48 the country would be a better place.
I do see some minor movement forward at major colleges who hire past famous players to be assistants. See Eric Bieniemy at Colorado and Tommy Frazier at Nebraska. Perhaps we'll see a "Notre Dame" effect. ND was certainly courageous to hire Tyrone Willingham last year. And, this year's success may tell a few people something . . . that man can coach!
Another ex-player to keep an eye on is Randy Shannon, just finishing up his second year as defensive coordinator at Miami. He played under Jimmy Johnson and was an assistant on his Dolphins staff before returning to his alma mater. Word is the University of Houston quietly checked on his interest before hiring Art Briles, but found he wasn’t yet ready to move. “His next job could be a million-dollar job,’’ a prominent athletic director told us.
As a Penn State grad and fan, I have been upset that Bobby Bowden is supposedly close to Joe Paterno's Division IA all-time winning record even though many of Bowden's early victories were at a minor, third-rate school. Your article on (Adrian) McPherson's dismissal shows emphatically that Bowden isn't close to Paterno in any measurement of responsibility, common sense and class, as well.
No question, Bobby Bowden loves to pile up the Ws and I’ll be the first to question his unique perspective on disciplining players, but he’s also a genuinely nice man. So let’s stick to what we know and measure coaches by their records -- Paterno 336-99-3, Bowden 332-95-4 (including 31-6 at Samford). As for Bowden’s Tough Guy approach leading up to the Sugar Bowl, you have to wonder if he isn’t under pressure from above. FSU president Sandy D’Alemberte is retiring and athletic director Dave Hart has been mentioned as a possible replacement for Doug Dickey at Tennessee.
I just wanted to make sure you weren't overlooking how Bobby Bowden handled Randy Moss. Moss was arguably the best offensive weapon in college football history, and his presence on the FSU football team in the mid-90s would have virtually assured FSU of running the table throughout his career. However, Bowden made the rules clear at the outset, one-strike-you're-out. Bowden did not vacillate or hedge his bets. Moss got in trouble, and he was gone. No meetings with parents, the team or attorneys. This is not to say that Bowden handles every player the same. He doesn't. But he does his best of seeking action that will be in the student's best interest. Sometimes talent needs to factor into the disciplinary equation, because a talented player has a lot more to risk by committing crimes.
Well, he certainly put his neck on the line for Randy Moss, who was running second-team as a redshirt freshman in the spring of 1996. Moss was gone after testing positive for marijuana while still serving a 30-day work-release sentence for assaulting a classmate back in West Virginia. The injured student spent several days in the hospital with head, kidney and spleen injuries. Moss had earlier signed with Notre Dame, but the school withdrew its offer, saying his application was four months late and poorly done.
Pete Rose should not be reinstated to baseball. If MLB had wanted to keep the door open for possible reinstatement, then the ban should have been indefinite rather than lifetime. Pete Rose did the one absolutely unforgivable thing in any sport, betting on the sport you are involved in. I couldn't care less if he had bet on other sports, but I am outraged that he bet on his own sport while actively involved in it.
Assuming its true, and the evidence is strong, I’m all for keeping him permanently out of the game. I wouldn’t be impressed if he now came clean. That just means he’s mugged for the cameras and lied all these years. But scummy warts and all, I think he’s entitled to a place in the Hall of Fame for his accomplishments as a player.
People out there clamoring for Roses' return obviously don't understand the effects of gambling on games, especially one he is involved in. I'm sure most of them don't even know what the "Dowd Report" is, much less have read any of it. It's clear that Commissioner Bart Giamatti had him over a barrel, and tried to save Pete some face by allowing him not to admit the obvious.
OK, if you’re into some heavy reading this holiday season, we encourage all to check out the investigative report at www.dowdreport.com.
As a high school coach in Virginia, I find it appalling when the educational process takes a back seat to wins and losses. When parents and boosters dictate the firing of coaches, what’s next -- parents interviewing and hiring teachers?
Let’s hope not. Of course, some would argue parents might better focus their energies on academics than what’s happening on the playing field.
Top 40-type football and men's basketball powers fund the athletic programs for their schools. If the women cannot keep their sports in the black, then they should be cut. It is that simple. The same should go for men's sports that cannot fund themselves. Why should a university spend $50,000 to fly the Cal girls basketball team across the country to play Clemson to play in front of 200 people? Are they trying to make the girls feel important? This is a joke. They are spending money that could be, and should be, better spent on improving the football and basketball facilities at their schools. This would attract better athletes and more fans, which would lead to more revenue. The girls should play intramural sports.
No problem, let’s recognize your top 40 programs for what they are -- professional without paying the athletes -- and send everyone else off to play intramurals. That’s what you would be looking at if you cut programs that can’t pay their way. I agree that colleges should be more practical in scheduling games, but it’s not solely an issue with women’s sports.
The Bobby Knight saga shows that Dr. Myles Brand is not suitable to lead the NCAA. He had plenty of opportunity to correct the Knight situation, but let it drag on until he manufactured an ending that showed only that he wanted to control the situation and not correct it.
Interesting how this played out, isn’t it? The General landed a fat contract at Texas Tech and Myles Brand is in line for a deal approaching $700,000-a-year at the NCAA.
I remain disgusted with the situation in which the student-athlete finds him or herself. Institutions and coaches promise and “contract’’ with the athlete during the recruiting process, and quite often these promises are not kept. Institutions change directions with their programs and coaches leave (Alabama/Texas A&M) and the athletes are stuck . . . It is always about the coach taking the larger school/salary, but the issue of the athlete being allowed to be pro-active with his or her eligibility is not addressed.
I feel your pain. So let’s encourage Myles Brand to put it on his plate when he takes over leadership of the NCAA. The member schools and coaches should be bound by the contracts and, if they elect not to take the high ground, then allow athletes the same freedom of movement.
I was reading your interview with J.C. Watts and had an opinion on how to deal with student athletes. Out of high school let them go to the schools to play their sport during it's season and then in the off season let them go home to work, or take college prep courses to prepare for when they become full-time students after their eligibility is over. My experiences with most 18-year-olds is that a good percentage of them are not emotionally prepared for a college student’s life, not alone a student athlete’s.
Wow, are we talking about college sports or hired hands? If you’re representing a university, it seems to me that you should make an occasional appearance in the classroom, even in-season. And if you’re a real student, you shouldn’t be spending your off-season taking classes to prep you for college.
When are you or someone else going to put the pressure on ABC to stuff a sock in John Madden's mouth on Monday Night football? Good Lord, his idiotic repetitiveness as he dissects, bisects and murders every little facet of a play drives people nuts. Not only that, he is so anxious to get his next word out, he abuses the English language until it cries out for help. Poor Al Michaels is reduced to nodding his head while Madden rambles on.
That’s OK, I’ll take Madden being Madden over Dennis Miller’s ego-driven rants any day.
You ask if we mind millions in state funding (or even massive private donations) going to athletic programs at Oklahoma. Well, I can tell you the satisfaction of crossing the Red River to kick Texas butt year after year is worth a hundred potholes or acres of uncut grass in highway medians. I don’t think anyone would sacrifice spending on education or advocate laying off state employees to finance beating the ‘Horns, but we’d think about it!
Your candor is much appreciated. And now that Coach Bob Stoops has got that Texas thing down, OU faithful might broach the subject of dealing with Oklahoma State. Mike Fish is a senior writer for CNNSI.com. Comments? To e-mail Fish, click here.
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