For Us By Us

Bruce Springsteen sang I'm on Fire, whoa, whoa, I'm on fire....he was talking about sex. Whoa, Whoa I'm on fire...I'm talking about the Black Coaches Association.

First some backstory. I'm a Southern White Male. I am a University of South Carolina Alumni. I am a USC football fan and appologist.

Now the problem. USC received a failing grade from the Black Coaches Association..heretofor recognized as the BCA. The failing grade was for not conducting a minority based or at least equal search when seeking a football coach to replace Lou Holtz. Now as we all know USC is the flagship university for the state of South Carolina, a state the BCA, NAACP, and what ever else groups despise.

USC received an F for not interviewing a minority candidate, not hiring a minority and I guess generally for its attitude toward the process of finding a head football coach.

What the BCA does is find examples in hot button states and pursues them. You mean to tell me that UCLA didn't interview a minority for its basketball job, and the BCA pounced and set up shop in Westwood. NOT A CHANCE. They want this to happen for publicities sake. I'm sure the same garbage is happening in Tuscalosa...So the BCA already with it's satelitte office set up just a few miles from the Confederate Flag, decides to embarass USC, and publicly slam us for not conducting a "proper search".

Well BCA, when you are in your position you open yourself up for criticism. I'd like to know how often a school should interview a black coach for its position before it becomes a feeble attempt at passifying you? If a school like USC has its top choice and gets it, should we conduct silly token interviews? Probably wouldn't be a bad idea for the experience. But you are John Smith, quarterback coach Toledo Rockets. USC has a coach in place, would you like to come to Columbia for an interview? If I'm John Smith I'd ask for what position, knowing full well that no coach is going to be hired, even as a part of the cabinet.

The BCA can go national with this and probably gain some points, unfortunately the mother in Ames, Iowa or the steelworker in Allentown, PA might not understand that Lou Holtz while he was at USC had a deal in place to have his son succeed him. After that fell through, when Skip pursued another job, Lou put one of his best friends in the coaching business and National Championship winner, and multi SEC champion Steve Spurrier in the job. Spurrier had been interested since October, and patiently waited for the year to end. Holtz resigned and alluded to his successor, which was the worst kept secret in the southeast. The next day the top candidate in America was a Gamecock.

Now I ask and I do this with all due respect. Doesn't Robert Johnson owner of the Charlotte Bobcats have every right to hire any coach he wants for his team when Bernie Bickerstaff finishes the season? Or should he be forced to interview Larry Brown? I ask you NAACP does Russell Simmons not have the right to name any CEO he wants for FUBU? College is a business, it should be more proactive in minority promotion, and hiring. It should not do that at the cost of its success.