If you have not been paying attention, which is okay, sometimes we all need a break from this very depressing reality, Rutgers University Basketball is now in the spotlight. Take a look at the video by ABC News by clicking:
http://abcnews.go.com/2020/video/losing-rutgers-basketball-coach-mike-rice-18893923.
Yes, close your mouth, that is the Head Coach Mike Rice throwing basketballs, kicking and pushing players, and calling them not-so-very nice names. As of today, Mike Rice has been fired, the AD has been removed, an assistant coach resigned and the President is on the hot seat. As least the reaction was quick and swift but I am exploring this topic because of the varying opinions I have read about this story. In addition, I will offer my opinion on why this is bigger than just Rutgers, there is something seriously screwed up in collegiate athletics.
Some comments I have read:
1. The kids could not retaliate because they are on scholarship and did not want to put that in jeopardy...
2. The kids were afraid of being labeled as "un-coachable" or problematic
3. No one would believe these kids were taking abuse from their Head Coach
4. The kids have a close relationship with the Head Coach and they have bought in to his way of "coaching"
5. The kid, if he retaliated, would have been arrested and charged with assault
6. The kids have dreams of playing professionally and did not want the risk of being kicked out of school and not being able to play basketball anymore or worse
7. The University allowed the coach to get away with this...
Are all of these comments wrong? Far from it, as a matter of fact, all of these comments are on point and I whole-heartily agree with them. AND THAT IS THE PROBLEM!!!!
Let's rewind to circa 1986, I was eight years old. My parents told me that if someone called you a "nigger", you were to fight them on sight!! NO if's, and's, no second chance!!! As the letter 'r' rolled off their tongue, your fist should be entering their mouth and knocking out some teeth! That was the rule.
My Father told me that if another person, outside of him or my Mother, were to put their hands on me without their permission, I was permitted to defend myself which means I needed to "put my dukes up and throw some hands!" That was the rule, you did not start anything but you better finish it!
I use to get into fights in my neighborhood all the time, well, I would not call them fights, more like me getting my face punched in. Sometimes I would take the beating, other times I would run back home and stay in the house until the next day. One day my Father was home and when I was about to get my face smashed in again, I ran home but to my surprise, I was in for something a little different that day. My Father grabbed me and dragged outside and told me to go fight. He said, "you are not going to run anymore, you are going to go over there and fight that boy and you are not coming home until you do."
See back then, Child Protection Services could not save you and if you threatened to run away, your parents would help you pack what little you owned! But I digress...
Did I stand up for myself that day and fight. Yes I did! Did I get my ass whooped again. YES I DID! But after that day, something in me changed. I no longer ran from confrontation. I eventually learned how to defend myself and then I actually started winning some of those fights. I still lost some but I won a lot more. My Father taught me a lot that day; he taught me how to fight, how to defend myself, to stop running, but most importantly, he taught me how to be man.
These lessons have evolved over the years. Am I willing to get into a fist fight at my age now? HELL NO, fist fights hurt! But I am not afraid to stand up and defend something I know is wrong. I know how to use my mind and communicate how I feel so I can diffuse a situation without it coming to violence. But it had to start somewhere...
Fast forward...
What is going on in college athletics that a student-athlete feels as though they have to be submitted to abuse because they are on scholarship? Or afraid of how the media is going to betray them? Or afraid of being kicked out of school?
What is going on in college athletics where such behavior is not only condoned but it is almost encouraged and explained as a tool for motivation? What is going on with the coaching profession that I have to call a kid a "fagot" or a "p*ssy" to get him to play harder?
What is going on with college athletics and its numerous student-athletes that they do not have the passion or motivation to play their respective sport at a high level? What is going on with these athletics not defending themselves when they are being physically abused?
There appears to be an absence of rules, a culture based on money. Personal values and development have been cast to the side for million dollar coaching salaries and the University's bottom line.
As a basketball coach, I love my kids too much to ever want to try to hurt them or revert to tactics of a Mike Rice to motivate them to play harder? Have I and the rest of the coaching staff ever been in a position where we felt the kids were not motivated to play? Absolutely! What did we do about? Well I can tell you what we did not do!
The thing that bothers me the most is that the head coach is in a position of authority and at any moment, he can take away the scholarship these kids need to remain in school. In essence, the head coach holds the future of these kids in his hands. The head coach knows it, the assistant coaches know it, and most importantly, the kids know it. So why abuse that power? Back in the day, we had a name for guys like that, we called them bullies. Bullies prey on the weak or less powerful because they can. Would Mike Rice square up with someone that did not have anything to lose, someone he did not control? Maybe, maybe not. I would have a little more respect for him if he could answer that question with a yes!
There are some clear issues that are part of a bigger problem that the NCAA is going to have to take a look at one day. From a cultural standpoint, men are not taking their responsibility of teaching boys how to be men very seriously. We are not teaching the rules that govern our manhood so that we all know the difference between right and wrong. These kids took this abuse not because they wanted to but because they actually believed it was motivational. They took this abuse because they were not taught that there are other avenues that can be explored to motivate a student athlete. They took this abuse because of the absence of genuine leadership and manhood.
The worse part is that an assistant coach, Eric Murdoch, stood up and made a claim last year that this was going on. Because he stood up for what he believed in as a MAN, he was fired from Rutgers and will probably never be able to coach at the collegiate level again because he broke the code of silence that governs the coaching fraternity: You never rat out the head coach.
What are we teaching here? What are we selling to our high school athletes about collegiate sports? Hold on, let me take a shot at this:
"Son, going to play basketball at the collegiate level will entail daily practices, oftentimes occurring multiple times a day, no holidays, no spring breaks, rarely coming home to see family, being broke, subjected to mental and physical abuse by your Head coach and the coaching staff, and being pimped by the University as they make millions off of your name and talent and you receive not one red cent. There is a good side; you have a less than 1% chance of going pro and if you do not go pro and you may have actually been able to be successful in the classroom despite your full-time job as an athlete; you will receive that Communications degree and be able to join the millions of others in the world who cannot find employment right now."
Don't get me wrong, I think it is a privilege and an honor to receive a scholarship and be able to play the sport you love and earn a degree for free. I do, I do, I do. But do I believe it is worth your pride, discipline, self-esteem, and self-worth? Never, you cannot ever put a price on those things. A man has to have rules, he has to have a line that cannot be crossed or he will never stand for anything. Ladies, you ask all the time why are the men acting so weak these days? They do not stand for something, THAT IS WHY!!!
Another article to read that falls in line with some of the topics I have touched on here can be read:
http://www.salon.com/2013/04/05/why_do_athletes_tolerate_abusive_coaches/
