by Kent Sterling
Behavior of those being led tell us more than the words of the leaders themselves. and because of the actions of his players, Tom Crean should be held accountable.
Before writing anything else – prayers, good thoughts, and hopes for a speedy recovery to IU basketball player Devin Davis, who is in serious condition at IU Health Bloomington Hospital. With that most important thought out of the way, let’s deal with what appears to be a repeated issue with the Indiana Basketball program.
Emmitt Holt is a freshman basketball player at Indiana, and reports are that Holt was driving the car that hit Davis, causing his injuries. And according to campus reports, he had a blood alcohol content of .025 when the incident occurred. Holt was cited for illegal consumption and operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of .02 or higher.
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This is the fourth alcohol related arrest or incident for a basketball team with 15 members in the last nine months. That’s four too many.
Just what the hell is going on down in Bloomington, and at what point is Tom Crean going to be held accountable for leading a program where this kind of behavior is tolerated?
In February, Hanner Mosquera-Perea was arrested for drunk driving and was suspended for all of two games. In April, Yogi Ferrell and Stanford Robinson were both arrested for trying to use fake IDs to gain entry to Kilroy’s Sports Bar. Now, not only has a freshman been cited for alcohol related violations, but his teammate is lying in a hospital.
Clearly and sadly, whatever consequence Crean meted out as the result of Mosquera-Perea, Ferrell, and Robinson’s idiocy had no effect on the behavior of the players he is employed to mentor and coach through their college years.
Coaches have a responsibility to focus on a variety of issues as student-athletes move through the awkward and dangerous latter stages of their adolescence. Judging by the level at which Indiana basketball players are committing alcohol related crimes, Crean has abrogated his duty in that narrow but extremely important regard.
Claiming players are responsible for their behavior works once and maybe twice, but for the third incident in less than a year, the leader of the program becomes accountable.
This is no different than a manager in business being held responsible for the repeated failures of his staff. Once, okay, bad things happen. Twice, maybe it’s a trend and maybe not. Three? The pattern of disobedience undoubtedly leads to the conclusion that leadership is ineffective.
When kids are arrested, that’s one thing. It’s embarrassing and provides a platform to issue a consequence that teaches a lesson that will last for the perpetrator and his peers. Obviously, peers weren’t paying close attention in February or April.
This one is on Crean, and a young man is in serious condition because of it.
A BAC of .025 means Holt drank a beer or maybe two, and what’s the big deal? Well, society says it’s enough of a problem that there is a law against it.
If I’m the father of a recruit interested in playing basketball at Indiana, the Hoosiers are coming off that list because of the pattern of misbehavior over the past nine months – and who knows how long before that.
The individual crimes would not be that big an issue, but collectively they reveal a lack of decisive action by leadership that might serve as a reasonable disincentive.
Grades have been good. Degrees have been earned. Lack of success on the floor has been an irritant. Recruiting has been uneven. I can live with all of that because a coach is employed primarily to safely usher kids in his care to a meaningful degree. What happened last night is endemic of a failure to provide a framework of rules and discipline that causes young men to make good decisions.
The good news Kent, is that you aren’t the father of anyone interested in coming to Indiana.
Maybe Purdue though.
Those who will were out to get Crean before will be quick to lay this at his doorstep, nothing happens in a vacuum.
No, nothing happens in a vacuum, but someone has to be accountable for this level of massive irresponsibility or there is no hope for change. Students must be held accountable, and they have not been at an adequate level or the behavior would have changed. One mistake belongs to the employee. The second lands on the boss. The third lands on the boss’s boss. That’s how corporate accountability works.
Kent, with you being a die-hard IU guy who has supported IU blindly for years, this is a refreshing article from you for a change and well written.
Both players should be stripped of the scholarships and Tom Crean should be suspended for at least the first six games. Hell, they might even play better with him not on the sidelines.
Great article.
First of all, isn’t “Corporate Accountability” an oxymoron? Second, the administration of Indiana University should also be accountable. Not that Crean should be in the clear by any means, but he isn’t the only “leader” at the university, just the highest paid.
Sadly, you are mostly right about corporate accountability. Layering in management has become the rule rather than the exception, and that layering makes isolating those who should be held culpable almost impossible.
With every massive misstep, responsibility should climb a level up the ladder.
Thoughts go out to DD and his family for a speedy recovery. I really am not sure how you lay this at Creans feet. You can coach and threaten all you want, but at the end of the day these kids are on their own in a party town, and the coach sure as heck can’t watch all of them. My niece was very vocal in high school against all drinking and after one year in college could drink more than me.
No amount of threatening works. Actions are instructive. A serious lapse in judgment should be answered with a swift and profound consequence. Recognition of boundaries follows. From there, control can be asserted.
Worst piece of writing in sports I have read in years. If you want fire a coach how about Jimbo Fischer. His players RAPE women and get nothing. What about UNC and Roy Williams, his players never went to class! 1900 student athletes took bogus classes no punishment! Or Franklin while a Vandy covers up sexual assault by his football players and leaves to take PSU job. Only way to fix this is fix society. One strike and your done. Believe me Crean should be fired but mainly because he can’t coach the last 3 minutes of a game to save his life and has zero X’s and O’s ability!
I never wrote that Crean should be fired, and have written extensively about UNC and Roy Williams. No one has been charged with rape at Florida State. We don’t know what happened there. If Jimbo Fisher has steadfastly backed rapists and abusers, he should be fired. Until we know with reasonable certainty what lines his players have crossed, judging him is premature. Your criticism is reckless and poorly targeted.
While I think there will be punishments as a result of this (and other) recent incidents, right now, at least for me (personally speaking) that’s not my immediate concern. My heart, best wishes and prayers, go out to Devin Davis – his family and friends, as well as the entire Hoosier community. Been trying to find some updated information on the situation and will remain hopeful for the best for him. Got on the phone to some of my relatives in Hoosier land to try to find out more, but they had nothing more to add.
In addition to myself, lots more of Big Blue Nation fans’ prayers are going out to Davis and Hoosier nation, I can surely attest. Seeing a lot of love pouring out and the very best of feelings going from BBN to Indiana fans all over. Actually gives me hope the world isn’t such a bad place after all.
Please continue to keep us informed, Kent.
I have heard from multiple sources that the head injury should cause no permanent damage, so our prayers have been answered.
You say a coach is employed to usher kids, blah, blah, blah.
You are right in theory. You are wrong in practice, as we both see and have seen all over the country for many years.
The reality is coaches are employed to win and you can either accept that or try to change that, but to deny it is the truth merely makes you look out of touch with reality.
Sorry to be so brutally honest.
Not true. Coaches are hired for a variety of reasons – winning, leading, mentoring, representing the university, and fundraising. They are fired for losing.
Kent, Any word on Devin’s BAC level? There’s a 3 headed monster in Bloomington and it starts with Fred Glass. What a clown he is. I’m sorry, but as an athletic director is it too hard to wear a coat and tie when presenting awards at IU football games. Then there is the whole Tre Roberson transfer with Wilson. I mean seriously did Wilson not see he had no receivers and might need to run option this year? All I know is all I want for Christmas is a 20-60 season by the Boston Celtics.
I believe Fred Glass is a quality AD who continues to evolve athletics at IU with unique vision and a desire for the athletes to prosper because of their association with the university. Not a fan of shirts and ties myself.
As far as Roberson’s transfer, I believe it was the result of Kevin Wilson’s honesty, and for that I praise him.
Yea I wish his “vision” included final fours and annual bowl games.
maybe this is what crean was referring to when he declared “these things tend to take care of themselves,” when defending his practice of going after recruits when there are no scholarships to give. he has two commits for 2015 and zero scholarships to award. whatcha gonna do, tom?
Oh no doubt somebody is gettin Creaned. Btw does anyone wonder why Luke Fisher left now.