Author Archives: Kent Sterling

Investigation of Ohio State Football relative to Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer’s job status is very simple

The Urban Meyer investigation should be pretty damn simple – and require one interview.

What did Urban Meyer know, when did he know it, and what did he do with the information?

The last question is the most important.

It’s that simple.

What we know is this – former receivers coach Zach Smith was physically abusive to his ex-wife in 2009 and 2015, and likely at points in between that did not result in police complaints.  Courtney Smith split from Zach, and Zach continued with threats to the point Courtney requested a domestic violence civil protection order on July 20th.

At that point, Meyer fired Smith, to whom he was fiercely loyal in part due to his being the grandson of former Ohio State coach and personal mentor Earle Bruce.

Meyer lied to the media at Big 10 Football Media Days about whether he knew about the 2015 accusations.  Continue reading →

As a parent, I would bring my son home NOW from Maryland’s football program

This helmet and another 100 or so should be empty – as Maryland has forfeited the right to employ the sons of parents who should demand better.

My son played college basketball, and there wasn’t a day while he was at Loyola of Chicago that I didn’t hope coaches and trainers were intently looking after his well being.

Health is everything, and I know coaches can be blinded by the need to win.  I didn’t care much about winning – I just wanted Ryan to be safe – challenged but safe.

When I read and listened to the reports of malfeasance within the leadership of the Maryland football program – how those who ran it used bullying and belittling to coerce additional reps, and shame players toward a dangerous physical edge – I thought of my son.

What would my reaction be if my son witnessed a teammate suffer from heat stroke as a result of sprint work, be hospitalized, and wither and die two weeks later?  How would I respond to the stories being told by teammates who were relentlessly bullied by a rogue strength and conditioning coach dangerous enthusiasm encouraged by the head coach? Continue reading →

Elam Ending in the TBT is just the beginning for a great change to end of basketball games

Which team wins The Basketball Tournament is of no consequence to few – other than those competing for the $2,000,000 first prize.

But I sat and watched three complete TBT games yesterday featuring alums of Ohio State, current members of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, and other teams featuring a hodge lodge of former college players whose talent falls just shy of what is necessary to earn millions in the NBA.

The Basketball Tournament is a great event for a variety of reasons, but the chief of which is its lack of history.  That allows it to be nimble in its rules, and only a nimble organization could go rogue enough to implement the Elam Ending.

What is the Elam Ending?  It’s a radical departure from the normal free throw filled death march to the clock hitting zeroes.  At the first clock stoppage after four minutes are left in the game, seven points are added to the score of the team leading to determine the target score at which the game will end. Continue reading →

Maryland records subpoenaed in investigation – Corruption in college basketball more than a little confusing

Rick Pitino already paid a price, and other coaches might too – but for what?

Let’s say a shoe company guy pays $50,000 to the guardian of a five-star basketball recruit, and he enrolls in a school with an apparel deal with that same company.

Is that an NCAA violation?    The shoe company guy isn’t an employee of the school and the recruit may be unaware of the guardian’s greed.

What if the recruit enrolls at a school unaffiliated in any way with that shoe company?  Is that against the law – or NCAA rules?

Coaches get paid far more money by shoe companies than recruits, and everyone is fine with that?

I’m baffled by the current set of rules

There is one rule I am very well aware of – cash finds value.  It works in almost every situation in this country.  If you can generate wealth for others, they are going to pay you to do it.  The only environment where that level of commerce is discouraged is in college football and men’s college basketball. Continue reading →

Logic tells us Kevin Pritchard is busy finding an upgrade at the three for the Pacers – if he hasn’t already

If Kevin Pritchard is successful making a deal, coach Nate McMillan might have all he needs to get to the NBA Finals.

Pacers president Kevin Pritchard will utilize cap space to execute a trade that will bring a starting small forward to the team.

I believe this because Pritchard used every media opportunity I witnessed or hosted to extoll the virtues of an uneven trade as the best path to bring improvement to a team that is now much closer to a viable NBA Finals threat when LeBron James bolted for the Lakers.

Al Jefferson being waived earlier today speaks to an urgency to free up cap space to do something soon.

Jefferson was scheduled to be paid $10M for his third season with the team, but is now due only $4M – the amount he was guaranteed.

There was no deadline to guarantee Jefferson’s deal, so Pritchard could have kept him on the roster until any point prior to the regular season and saved the same amount..
Continue reading →

Handshake line charade needs to go, but not because of John Calipari’s act last night

John Calipari left the floor last night without shaking hands. It’s a shame anyone believes the world would be better if he did.

Kentucky coach John Calipari has always been a self-immersed twit and a blight on college basketball, so please don’t misunderstand my thoughts on the stupidity of the postgame handshake ritual as a validation of his decision to blow it off last night.

Kentucky got beat, K-State celebrated, and Calipari left the floor without waiting to shake hands.  Not defending it, not chastising it – I don’t care about whether Calipari shook hands.  That he lost – again – is good enough for me.

The handshake line is an idiotic and worthless gesture executed by athletes and coaches who are doing what they have been told without any empathy, joy, or purpose.

It is done only to try to improve the optics for fans who are easily buffaloed into believing the handshakes convey sportsmanship.  They don’t. Continue reading →

Curtis Jones leaves Indiana Basketball program – best for both Jones & Hoosiers?

Sometimes the ball spins on a finger, and sometimes it falls to the fall. Curtis Jones fell yesterday.

Coaching changes bring a change of culture.  Culture change brings adversity.  Adversity brings roster changes.

Such is the cycle of life in college basketball.

Curtis Jones was recruited to Indiana by Tom Crean, and he played his freshman season for the former coach.  When Archie Miller replaced Crean, it became clear very quickly that the two leaders shared little other than a love for basketball.

Indiana announced yesterday that Jones has decided to leave the team immediately and will transfer at the end of the semester.

While I’m a big fan of fighting through adversity, it’s not always the right option for everyone.  Testing yourself to see exactly how much misery you can bear isn’t a valuable experience for all. Continue reading →

Time to get rid of hand shake line at end of games after Mick Cronin nearly fights Xavier player

Today wasn’t Mick Cronin’s best day. This pic is from eight years ago. It’s hard to find pictures of Cronin where he doesn’t look nuts. This one is my favorite.

Slapping hands while repeating “Good game” 20 times without making eye contact is not good sportsmanship.

It’s a show, and it’s presence as a mindlessly followed tradition has consequences.

Today, it nearly resulted in a fight between Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin and a player for rival Xavier.

When I was in high school, a player from Trinity High School sucker punched one of my teammates during the postgame hand shake line.  A semi-brawl followed.

As a freshman, my son was in the the middle of a full on brawl after a basketball game at Arlington High School after an Arlington player sucker punched one his Cathedral teammates.  The father of the player who was punched had a cardiac episode as a result of the episode.

Had social media been what it is today, the season likely would have ended for both teams.

Multiply this two tame stories by 10,000, add today’s mess, and you get an idea of how mindnumpingly stupid this inane tradition is. Continue reading →

Why I didn’t like Paul George for Oladipo/Sabonis trade still valid but not as much fun as watching current Pacers

Victor Oladipo and Domas Sabonis was a nice take for a one year rental of a brand first player.

In the first minutes after reading reports of the Pacers deal sending Paul George to OKC for Victor Oladipo, I was critical on Twitter, “Nothing but good thoughts for @Pacers fans who view the trade with hope and optimism. Wish I shared your rosy outlook.”

And I was right.

After last night’s utter immolation of the Miami Heat by the new-look Pacers, I tweeted “Where are all the tools who thought Kevin Pritchard got schooled in the Paul George deal? @Pacers keep Vic & Domas for years. PG goner in 2018.”

And I was right.

What I wanted the Pacers to get in return for Paul George was an asset with which they might build a championship level roster.  Generally, those assets are drafted, not dealt for, so I was disappointed.

Superior players win championships, and neither Victor Oladipo nor Domas Sabonis projected toward that level of player.  An unprotected pick that projected into lottery might have brought that kind of talent to Indianapolis.

What the players seem to have gotten was entirely unforeseeable to fans, media, and most league executives – a pair of very complimentary players capable of immediately integrating with a culture like the Pacers and becoming unexpectedly productive. Continue reading →