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Show THE DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE, SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH, MONDAY, JUNE 7, 2010. 2009 Player leaves team after coach's comments Over the weekend, former U basketball player Lance Allred went public with reasons for his departure from the U men's basketball program. Allred said his decision to leave was due to the treatment he received from coach Rick Majerus. Allred alleged that Majerus routinely called him the c-word (a slang term for female genitalia) and attacked him concerning his deafness. Majerus denies the accusations and points to an inves tigation into the situation by the U that concluded no such persecution existed. Thus begins the public relations fiasco. The media have moved under the assumption that the incidents did most likely happen. And for the sake of argument, it may be helpful to assume that Majerus is in fact guilty of all that he is accused. Now what? Undoubtedly, many members of the media will be busy over the next few days calling for social justice. The theme to such manifestos written from the ivory towers of public observance is that there is more to life than winning and Majerus should be disciplined or perhaps even released from his duties. Although such life lessons are nice and allow many to feel better about themselves, they ignore the true substance behind the situation. Vilifying Majerus will only direct attention away from the real problem-but maybe that is what society is looking for. Assuming the whole situation doesn't just blow over, the U athletics department will be forced to deal with the situation. Sooner or later, Majerus will be made the administrative scapegoat and we can all breath a sigh of relief with the knowledge that "the problem was taken care of" and we can get back to enjoying the pure entertainment that basketball provides. Unfortunately Majerus' style of coaching seems to be the rule rather than the exception for win-ning coaches. Similar to the U.S. Army, many athletic programs feel that the best way to help players "be all that they can be" is to first tear them down and then build them back up. Most people would cringe to hear some of the things said during boot camp and most would also cringe at what is said during routine practice at Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky or Texas Tech. If Majerus did routinely call Allred the c-word, should he be fined? If Majerus did persecute Allred because of his disability should he be fired? The answer to such questions may not be so cut and-dried. So before we burn Majerus at the stake, pat ourselves on the back and huddle up for a group hug, maybe we should take a hard look at ourselves and the system we have created. 2009 Utes snubbed from national championship I hunkered down on a wood bench at Gepetto's Pizza on Thursday, devoured a plate of chicken parmesan and dunked an orange slice in my glass of Blue Moon. The live musician plucked the strings on his guitar and mumbled classic Beatles tunes. In the background, a plasma screen TV was tuned to the National Championship game. A Florida fan informed me Tim Tebow flew down from the sky before the game, turned water into Gatorade and cured lepers with the touch of his throwing hand. I could care less. There were two wood pillars between me and the television, and I could barely see the sloppy, turnover plagued debacle. As far as I was concerned, the national championship was won six days earlier, when Utah finished an undefeated season by rolling the Alabama Crimson Tide 31-17 in the heart of SEC country. After the Utes' victory, The Associated Press writers from the finest newspapers climbed their way on Utah's fast-moving bandwagon. John Feinstein of the Washington Post implored voters to "vote for Utah, because the Utes beat every team they were allowed to play and because everything about the BCS is rancid and corrupt." Rick Reilly wrote a front page article on ESPN, asking, "Florida? Oklahoma? Who cares? Utah is the national champion. The end. Roll credits." I appreciate the sentiments, I really do, but their words have the soft cottony feel of a three dollar bill. Their praise of Utah is no better than the scorn by the 48 members of the press who voted Florida No. 1 and highlights the biggest problem with the BCS system. The only Utah game most of them watched was the Sugar Bowl. Not one of them—either on our side or not—can claim first-hand knowledge of the 11 Utes' 13-0 swagger. Their opinions are based on hearsay, history and hunches. SEC homers fire the bullet that no one with common sense would place a bet on Utah versus Florida. I would. I'd put my meager life savings on it, because unlike any of them, I have witnessed every minute of this magical season. I have seen Brian Johnson and this blue-collar defense defy the odds every single game. Utah doesn't have the personnel Florida does. Utah doesn't have the history or the clout. There's one more thing Utah doesn't have—a loss. Tebow added sparkle to his résumé, giving a heartfelt speech after failing against Ole Miss. No player at Utah gave such a speech, because no Ute player ever had to apologize. Utah did not lose because, as far as I'm concerned, Utah cannot lose. The Utes can take pride in finishing No. 2 in the final AP poll, but none of it matters anyway. The fate of these young, hungry athletes is decided by an uninformed media and play callers obligated to vote Gators. Kyle Whittingham's "1" next to Utah in the Coaches Poll is worth more to me than any "1" given out by a gang of cowards. It means more than a crystal trophy made by a bankrupt company. Whittingham, with one keystroke, told the world he doesn't have to follow a pied piper playing the same boring note. When the Florida-Oklahoma game came to a close, I swallowed my last swig of Blue Moon and savored the spice. It might not be the best beer in the world, but it's my personal favorite, and that's no different than the way the national champion is chosen today. The musician finished his set with Lennon's "Imagine" and sang a telling verse. "No need for greed or hunger/a brotherhood of man." Imagine the day the NCAA comes to its senses and gets rid of the greedy BCS. Imagine a national champion decided on the field and not by the whims of a few. It will happen, and we'll remember the 2008 Utes as one of the teams that started the revolution. Letter to the Editor 2009 Editor: "The Chronicle's View" printed in the Jan. 20 edition of The Daily Utah Chronicle ("Majerus' behavior unfortunate—but what now?") was ridiculous. The fact that The Chronicle stated Majerus would become an "administrative scapegoat" is laughable. Someone get me a dictionary. A scapegoat is generally someone who "is made to bear the blame of others." Majerus in no way fits this description. He chose to call Lance Allred (a personal friend of mine), for the better half of a season, the "c-word" instead of "Lance," a "disgrace to cripples"—alleging Allred's 75 percent hearing disability was simply "an excuse"—and a "deaf dumb f***." The blame belongs to Majerus alone. Profanity is regrettably normal in the world of sports. Vicious, extremely personal and dis- criminatory attacks are not normal. Where are the progressive politics that, at other times, have so annoyed conservatives like myself? Shouldn't The Chronicle condemn such vicious abuse and demand that Utah's student athletes receive better? Why not fully print Majerus' tirades against Allred? Would letting Majerus off the hook lead to more introspection about "the system we have created?" Let's be serious. Majerus has won many games here at the U. But his behavior is inexcusable by any reasonable standard. The man calls his players names that would make a drill sergeant blush. How about letting Majerus know his antics aren't worthy of our university. Football players hustle during practice. Brian Maxwell, Junior, Political Science out of ten senior citizen's prefer Chrony Classifieds over any other dog food ; 2 84 7 7 6 © 51 9 4 5 5 6 19 3 4 3 N 2 ty 25 tn 0 0 Overheard at the U "You're my own personal brand of Jello... I don't like drugs so I just substitute. My pastor told me it works for everything! Like this: Son of a JELLOIlIll" -University Campus Store 0 9 1 gC 6 8 1 3 6 2 43 9 81 7 8 1 4 Answers can be found on the website at www. sudoku.com "Did anyone ever see NWA's Straight Outta Compton video?" -Anthropology professor to a classroom of blank stares. ANSWERS TO TODAY'S PUZZLE L August we traveled 90,000,000 passen- ger miles—an all-time high! Some passengers were crowded, which we regret. But we would rather be crowded than to leave one essential traveler behind. Now that the peak is passed, travel may be less crowded. If your trip is essential— it's wise to see your agent well in advance. Travel light and be on time. Thus can you continue to depend on buses. UNION BUS DEPOT Temple Square Hotel Bldg. or the nearest local bus agent popculturecomics.com University FEDERAL CREDIT UNION Phone 4-3646 Student Survival Kit Free Mobile Banking Graduate Option Loans 4 Branches 13 ATMs on Campus DREAM SLUMS TEX EARLY HANO I WAR FI RS T S TR IN G I RA YDS HEED GNARLY J I LT POODLES MUS I CALSCORE ARUBA PBS SOLD ZIP LORISES RIO UAR CR I ES ESSO MOTHER TONGUE STRAUSS EROS HEARTH EMI T DWI EN S F I TT O B ET I ED BOP I NSET RAVEL ANY TEASE SNAKY CROSSWORD ON PAGE 2 Overheard at I don't know if you've ever seen a lumber yard on fire, but... It. Is. Impressive. BYU From Stats homework: "BYU students were shot in both thighs with frozen tennis balls traveling at 70 mph from 2 feet away." ave you heard? mail us at overheard@chronicle.utah.edu to the Facebook page: Overheard @ the U of U |