This school has been calling for Lane to apologize for saying, at a University of Tennessee athletic related function, "Pahokee funnels kids to Florida". What would you think if the principal has gator stuff all over the web site and his bio page?
Seems more like tempest in a teapot. There are lots of situations all over the country where the Football coach is know to favor certain schools and steers his kids to that school. I'm guessing that in Texas there are numerous High School coaches who are also Texas fans and who try to influence their best players to go to Texas. Ideally the Coach should stay out of it other than to provide information to the kids and parents about the recruiting process. When Irish fans learn that a particular HS coach is either a ND Grad or ND Fan they are happy and hope that he sends his top players our way. If they find out a particular coach is the opposite then they are mad and lament that the coach is interfering with the kid. Case in pont there is school in Minneapolis called Cretin-Durham Hall it's a Catholic school and we've gotten some good players from them. Recently Michael Floyd who was one of the top WR in the class of 2008. Now supposedly the Coach there doesn't really like ND, but he had an longtime OL coach who did and so it sort of balenced out. Now that OL coach is gone and their top kid who both Tenn and ND are after an OT named Sentreal Henderson isn't really giving ND much of a look. Speculation is that since we lost our guy on the staff the head coach has the most influence and he doesn't like ND. It's recruting it's not fair, never has been and never will be.
I have no problem with that school steering kids to hell in a hand basket if they choose to do so. But when someone points it out, don't demand that they apologize in a public place when you are guilty of what they pointed out! Looks like I forgot the link: Pahokee principal removes Gator logo from web site
... and before anyone gets their dander up, I was not inferring that Florida is equivalent to hell in a hand basket. :twisted: It was meant to show: Even if they send them to something worse than Flor... nope, that didn't sound good either. :? What if I said... :cry: Nope that would dig the hole a little deeper... :roll: I give up
Pahokee funnels kids to Florida? Heck....that's like saying that Chattanooga High funnels kids to Tennessee....no....wait....uh.... 8)
Dave, I am certain that activity is wide spread. I see nothing wrong with it. My problem with this whole issue is that the principal of this school is demanding an apology from CLK because he pointed it out. This idiot had Gator logos on the school's web site. He is very open about being a follower of the Gators. ...and he wants an apology? This moron took down the logos. ... an admission that there was substance in CLK's words but he is still demanding the apology. That would be like someone pointing out that I am a Tennessee fan living in Texas. I would look like an a$$ demanding an apology for him spouting the truth.
Well the principal demanding a public apology is stupid, but I also think Kiffen shouldn't have made the accusation in the first place at least not anyplace where it would get into the press or back to the school. I complain a lot about Charlie and the things he says. I think he talks too much and gives reporters too much ammo. There are numerous instances where he's said things on the record that have come back to bite him. If I were a coach I'd be more like Jim Tressel, silent but effective. Other coaches who liked the sound of their own voice and it got them in hot water routinely were Steve Spurrier and Lou Holtz.
There is a lot of truth in what you say Terry. I guess my point of view stems from Tennessee being on the receiving end of a lot of those Steve Spurrier barbs. It feels good to have a coach that will go on the offensive rather than rolling up like an armadillo to become road kill. It may be a short lived feeling but then again, it may not. For right now, it feels good. 8)
I don't recall Lou's words ever coming back to bite him, but my memory is not the most reliable. Certainly he has said things that people scoffed at or rolled their eyes, like talking with a worried look on his face about what a tough opponent Navy was back when we were whipping them on a regular basis. I think that what differentiates Lou from Charlie is that nothing Lou ever said publicly was "off the cuff" (at least how I recall) even though it may have sounded like it. He always knew what he would say in a given situation before he said it, and it seemed to me like he never missspoke, even when asked an "entrapment" type of question by the media. On the other hand, Charlies definitely speaks off the cuff without prior thought, which I believe is what you are referring to.
You are correct about Charlie, I like that "off the cuff without prior thought" description! But Lou, to this day, says stuff that fans and media alike just go nuts over, but in his case that's part of the deal. Fan's love to hate him so they watch and complain about the stuff he says on ESPN during football season. To ND fans who love Lou (most do) it does ring hollow. But trust me just like Tom (an Tenn fans) hated Spurrier for his comments, Gator fans loved him for those same quips. Terry
That was my point in comparing Lou to Charlie. It's Lou's schtick, his routine, even when he was coaching. Lou has always had a unique talent as an entertainer in addition to his coaching accomplishments. Love him or hate him, his football knowledge combined with his quick wit is what makes him so effective in his studio analyst role on ESPN. Can you imagine Charlie in the same role?
I'm not surprised, Aquila. I'm sure a lot of folks feel that way about him. I know you're not a big fan of his, but I'm at peace with that (referring to my past rant). :wink:
Sid, there are a lot of people who don't like Lou. I think that's the deal, a lot of people don't like him, but a lot of people do like him. Sort of like DickieV.
I have the utmost respect for Lou. I think the skits he does now is demeaning to his status in College Football.
I understand your point. Beleive me, there are times when I would agree. One thing I do know is that he gets an awful lot of $ for his public speaking engagements, and his visibility on ESPN - for those who like him and would invite him to speak - probably helps to keep his "market value" up there. If he is nothing else, he's a very smart man.
I think he was a great coach and I'm sure he's a tremendous motivational speaker. I, like Tom, am not fond of the stupid skits ESPN has him do and I don't particularly like his commentary as I think it's a bit hard to follow and understand. I realize that the skits do not define his true character but I think it does demean his status among college football's icons of the past 30 years or so.
You will not get an argument from me. I agree with everything you said Sid. I saddens me to see him selling some of his credibility. I know this is a different situation, but I equate his antics to my childhood hero, Johnny Unitas. He stayed in the game too long playing well past his prime. He should have retired in 1970 but played even after Baltimore traded him. He became a color commentator but was not very good at it. He wound up cutting all ties with the Colts when the team moved to Indy. Some of his tirades were a little off and defamed him to some. I think that Lou could retain his time in the spotlight without stooping to those skits. Lou, in my opinion, should keep his good name and drop the Dr. Lou... Dr. Lou skits.