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June 15, 2003 It has been quite a summer for college coaches. Just when all the hoopla about Mike Price and Larry Eustachy started to die out, Rick Neuheisal trips up in a major manner to qualify himself to join what some are starting to call the Rogue’s Gallery of College Coaches. Everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame, but what a way to get it. By the way, did you know all of these guys came out of the same region? Mike Price coached at Washington State, Larry Eustachy formerly coach at the University of Idaho (which is just eight miles from Washington State, and Rick Neuheisal coached across the state. It must be something in the water that causes them to make such blunders. Neuheisal is said to be considering fighting his termination, which will probably go just about as far as Price’s attempt. Should Neuheisal have been fired for what he did? Absolutely. Neuheisal broke a standard and plain rule - no gambling. It doesn’t matter to what degree the rule lies it, the key issue is that he broke a clearly defined rule - for which there is a penalty. Why is such a high premium placed on the behavior of coaches? There are several reasons. A coach is a leader. A coach is a leader of young men who will be leaders in the future. A coach is a role model. As much a role as money plays today, sports is still not solely about entertainment. At the core of sports is some value of a precious element - the development of young lives. Very few young men, and fewer young women, will ever go on to compete at the professional level. Most youth who participate in sports are finished by high school. A small amount go on to the collegiate level, and a minuscule number are good enough to step into the professional ranks. One of the main things that sports is all about is developing character in young lives. A coach has the unique position of being able to influence a good size group of young people every year. A good coach has an impact on young lives for years after the athlete has ceased to compete. Yes, when competition is just a faded memory, many former athletes can describe in detail the positive impact a special coach has had on their life. Coaches can build up a player’s work ethic, self-image, personal ethics, habits, respect for others, ability to participate as a member of a team, and much more. That is why it is so sad when a coach stumbles - it tears at the fabric of his message and makes he or she into a hypocrite. Young athletes can see right through empty platitudes if the coach doesn’t follow them himself. Lead by example is a very true adage - athletes are more aware of what a coach does than what he says. In this arena, Price, Eustachy and Neuheisal all failed miserably. One time events? Maybe not - where there is smoke, there is fire. Usually these incidents don’t just crop up in isolation - they tend to become public after a pattern of behavior. Each of these men will have to pay a heavy price for their failure - it will cost them millions of dollars in potential income. For a couple of thousand dollars of gambling money, Neuheisal threw away millions of dollars he would have earned over the next few years. However, the errant behavior of these men has rightly caused the termination of their high dollar contracts as what they did has negatively influenced not only the many athletes that they have lead in the past, it also casts the sporting world into a bad light. It has been no picnic for their families either - they are also victims. It is true that if you dance with the devil, you gotta pay the dues. It is highly doubtful that a line is forming to hire any of these guys. Before you consider feeling sorry for these fellows, consider the type of damage they have done to collegiate athletics in general and the coaching position in specific. Where are the Joe Paterno and Vince Lombardi type of leaders in sports today? Are all coaches willingly to sell out for money and pleasure? Or are there still some solid leaders of young men and women around to model the right type of behavior for athletes to follow? That is what is desperately needed in athletics today - solid leadership that is not on sale. ------------ About the author: Dwayne Hines currently has 12 books selling in major bookstores and writes for major magazines such as Physical and FitnessRX. Email Dwayne Hines: dhines@3dinet.com Comment on this column in the forum. ------------ |
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