On Mike Gundy's Rant
As reported all over the place, including EDSBS, Deadspin, and the FanHouse, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy went ballistic in a press conference yesterday after OSU's shoot-out win over Texas Tech. The reason for his displeasure was a column in The Daily Oklahoman by Jenni Carlson. I posted a longish comment about it over at EDSBS, but then later I realized, Hell, I have a blog, too! So I'll post it here as well.
The story came after OSU benched starting quarterback Bobby Reid in favor of newcomer Zac Robinson. Carlson pretty much said that her impression, largely based on scuttlebutt she's heard around the program, is that Reid was whiny and wasn't tough enough, and the coaches had finally had enough, and benched him despite his talent. I should note that the comments I've seen on a lot of blogs, and especially the ones on the Oklahoman web site, have been strongly in favor of Coach Gundy "standing up for a player" and "calling out the media," especially for relying on "rumor" in "assassinating a kid's character."
I have no dog in this fight, but I think I'm with Carlson. It's not the best article ever written, even from that human interest, use an anecdote as a symbol for someone's character style. But the OSU coaches benched Reid for a reason -- that's not rumor. And (without knowing much about the OSU team), it appears that Reid was thought to be more talented than Robinson. So why the benching? It can't solely be because they were losing this year, because they left Robinson in even after they got annihilated by Troy. He did have some kind of injury, but the coaches had said this year that players don't lose starting spots because of injury, and Reid lost his. Carlson says there have been rumors going back years that Reid is a whiny malcontent, and pointed to video of him laughing during a big defeat, and suggested that might be a reason for the benching.
The benching of a starting quarterback is news, and unless you want the beat writers to simply throw up their hands and say, "Oh well, Coach Gundy must know what he's doing! In Gundy We Trust!" then it has to be okay for writers to suggest reasons for the benching. If, after eliminating the other best possibilities, "attitude" seems to be the reason, I think it's okay to print that.
And either Reid is a nearly-22-year-old multi-year starter who is mature enough to lead a Big XII team -- and consequently, mature enough to accept some criticism of his toughness -- or he is still a little boy who has to run home to Momma when some (girl) bully picks on him. Gundy can't have it both ways.
Ultimately, I think Colorado Coach Dan Hawkins said it best when it comes to the sensitivity of players and their families.
The story came after OSU benched starting quarterback Bobby Reid in favor of newcomer Zac Robinson. Carlson pretty much said that her impression, largely based on scuttlebutt she's heard around the program, is that Reid was whiny and wasn't tough enough, and the coaches had finally had enough, and benched him despite his talent. I should note that the comments I've seen on a lot of blogs, and especially the ones on the Oklahoman web site, have been strongly in favor of Coach Gundy "standing up for a player" and "calling out the media," especially for relying on "rumor" in "assassinating a kid's character."
I have no dog in this fight, but I think I'm with Carlson. It's not the best article ever written, even from that human interest, use an anecdote as a symbol for someone's character style. But the OSU coaches benched Reid for a reason -- that's not rumor. And (without knowing much about the OSU team), it appears that Reid was thought to be more talented than Robinson. So why the benching? It can't solely be because they were losing this year, because they left Robinson in even after they got annihilated by Troy. He did have some kind of injury, but the coaches had said this year that players don't lose starting spots because of injury, and Reid lost his. Carlson says there have been rumors going back years that Reid is a whiny malcontent, and pointed to video of him laughing during a big defeat, and suggested that might be a reason for the benching.
The benching of a starting quarterback is news, and unless you want the beat writers to simply throw up their hands and say, "Oh well, Coach Gundy must know what he's doing! In Gundy We Trust!" then it has to be okay for writers to suggest reasons for the benching. If, after eliminating the other best possibilities, "attitude" seems to be the reason, I think it's okay to print that.
And either Reid is a nearly-22-year-old multi-year starter who is mature enough to lead a Big XII team -- and consequently, mature enough to accept some criticism of his toughness -- or he is still a little boy who has to run home to Momma when some (girl) bully picks on him. Gundy can't have it both ways.
Ultimately, I think Colorado Coach Dan Hawkins said it best when it comes to the sensitivity of players and their families.
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