A Different Angle On Louisville Hiring Bobby Petrino

Yes, I am a Louisville Cardinal sports fan. I have been for almost all of my life. It's only natural that I would have some sort of opinion on the Cardinals hiring Bobby Petrino to coach the football team again. How do I feel about that? Well, I'll be honest, because that's all I ever am. 

I like it and I'm not ashamed to say I like it for mostly football reasons. I like watching the team win games and that's my primary focus as a fan. It's also the primary focus of most fans, because most fans of a college program didn't get their education at that school. They have no stake in the reputation of the university. The stake most of us have is in the amount of time and money we put into following our favorite team. Louisville is going into the toughest division in the ACC with Florida State and Clemson. This program is bigger than it was just a year ago. It's not every day you get to hire someone that has the kind of experience that Petrino does when it comes to winning games against big competition. 

The reason that this is even worth writing about is because there is an angle to this hiring that goes beyond wins and loses for a lot of people. Some Louisville fans and fans of other programs that compete with Louisville think it's terrible that Petrino got another chance. I don't. Why? Because the best athletic director in the country seems to have the best interest in his heart, not only for the university, but for people. Oh, and winning....make no mistake about that. This is also about wins and losses. That said, Tom Jurich has been a guy that isn't scared to give people a second chance. As a human being I find that supremely important. If nothing else, we are all flawed creatures and if it were not for the dozens of second chances I have been given by family, friends, employers, and mentors in my life there is no telling where I'd be. Most of us grow as we age because we have been through times where we were not up to snuff, which is to say the standards of those who love us and even more importantly, our own standards in many cases. We grow because we gain knowledge and insight from situations that test our ability to rise up from dark, difficult, or unhealthy places.

This hire is more about Tom Jurich than it is Bobby Petrino. Jurich has put himself out there. This is on him. If Petrino screws him, it's just a snake being a snake and the guy that gets bit is the fool. If  Petrino doesn't come through and make the most of this opportunity then Jurich will be held accountable by his employers, employees, and supporters of the program. Nothing is shameful or disgusting about grace. In sports there is nothing shameful or disgraceful about wanting to win. Sports is character building? Your damn right. And nothing has the potential to build character like having yours revealed and then, hopefully, having to evaluate who you are. Some learn and become people of substance and value. Others don't and life can be difficult as they never find a place of peace in their life. 

I don't know Bobby Petrino and I'm fairly confident that anyone reading this blog doesn't know him personally either. I do know he's a human being though. I know he has a family. I know he has friends. And I certainly know that if he has people sticking up for him (former players, his children, the employer that he pissed off royally) that are close to him, then he must be a person worthy of salvage. 

Not one of us can throw a stone at Bobby Petrino. Let each one of us put our darkest secrets on the table for others to see. Let each one of us put our worst deeds on the table for others to see. Let each one of us put our transgressions against friends and family on the table for others to see. Do you feel me yet? Thing is, most of us don't have our mistakes posted all over the paper and ESPN do we? So we get a bit of a pass because we don't have hundreds of thousands of people (or millions) knowing exactly what you have done. We have the balls to pass judgment on others for their deeds and want to deny them their right to move on. That's less human than anything Bobby Petrino, Bruce Pearl, Jimmy The Greek, Pete Rose, John Calipari, Tiger Woods, Rick Pitino, or any other of a myriad of public sports figures have done. For some reason, we don't want to give benefit of the doubt to public figures. We want to see them hurt. I've certainly been guilty, but as many of you know....that isn't me these days, or at least I'm trying for it not to be. Ups and downs, ups and downs.

The bottom line for me is that Bobby Petrino is a football coach. He has never been investigated for cheating and he has won. He may not have been the type of person you want your daughter to marry or even the kind of person you want as a friend, but he has done his job. I don't "like" what he has done in his personal life any more than anyone else, but it's not my place to judge him any more harshly than those who know him best. 

I am not making a case to change any one's mind about how they feel about Bobby Petrino. I am making the case for human understanding and seeing the bigger picture. And I will take it another step before I close this out;

Have any of you cheated on your spouse?

Have any of you had your spouse cheat on you?

Have any of you ever lied to your employer?

Have any of you ever lied to a friend?

Have any of you ever had a friend lie to you?

Have any of you ever taken advantage of having an upper hand at some point in your life? 

Have you ever been treated badly by people you love?

Have you ever treated people you love badly?

Have any of you ever been given a shot at redeeming yourself by someone that has grace and your best interest at heart? Have you ever given grace to those that have wronged you? If the answer is yes, congratulations....you are winning the game. 

When it comes right down to it and you strip away the unimportant window dressing of sports or any other form of entertainment, we are all human beings. We are capable of redemption. I find that more uplifting and motivating than I do seeing someone scorned and punished for being what each of us are; human beings that make mistakes, but are also capable of turning it around. A big part of turning it around is the grace and support of those around you. Without them, you would be an island and life isn't worth living if we are not willing to allow each other to make mistakes and try to come back from them. 

For now, the hiring of Bobby Petrino by Louisville is a football or sports story, but when all is said and done the story will be much more human, whether it turns out good or bad. 

Oh and by the way....I can't see this picture;

without thinking of this;

The Final Four! Louisville vs Kentucky! WOW!!!

It's been almost three weeks since I've written anything for this blog. That's sort of unusual, but my job involves writing and being on the internet quite a bit, so I just don't feel like doing as much with this as I used to. That said, I would be missing a golden opportunity, perhaps a once in lifetime chance to comment on Louisville and Kentucky playing each other in the Final Four. Yes, they have been in the Final Four together before. In 1975, Louisville lost 75-74 to eventual National Champion UCLA, and John Wooden's last title team, preventing a Kentucky versus Louisville championship contest. Of course, no one can forget the dramatic 1983 NCAA tournament game between the Cards and Cats. A very tight game most of the way that saw Jim Master hit a last second jumper to send the game into overtime. In the overtime, Louisville's superior athletic talent won out and the wear and tear from the press took its toll on Kentucky. 

Here we are, almost 30 years after the "Dream Game" and we get to one up that contest. This one is not for the right to go to the Final Four, but for the right to play for a national title. This is easily the most important match up between these two teams since the 1983 game. 

You've read all the articles and heard all the talking heads, so you don't really need a breakdown from me. I'll take this from a bit of a different approach. How do the fans seem to be doing in regards to smack talking and dealing with the anxious feelings about their favorite team squaring off against their most hated rival? All I can go off of is based on what I've seen on some TV coverage and from what I've read on the internet. So, I'll take a look at that and tell you how I think you should feel about this game!!! That's why you are reading this, right? 

If you are a UK fan, you were expecting to be in the Final Four. And, let's be real, you are expecting and have been expecting all along that your team will win its 8th national title. Nothing wrong with that. Kentucky is clearly the most talented team in the tournament and they play with very unselfish attitudes, which I believe is one of the biggest reasons they only lost two games. They don't pout and they don't mind playing defense, even when the offense isn't in full gear. With Anthony Davis leading the way, UK looks like a team that can only stop itself. I think they will be the NCAA champions this year. As a Louisville fan, I hope not, because I want my team to be there. As a basketball fan, I simply know that UK is a great team. And I don't use great loosely. So, how can I pick on some of the UK faithful? Easily. Hey, folks...yeah you arrogant UK fan.....enjoy this!!! Do you really need to remind anyone that your team is the best? Do you have to tell fans of other teams how bad their teams are? And if you do, then doesn't that lessen the accomplishments of the Wildcats? If Baylor, Indiana, Louisville, North Carolina, are all terrible, then why feel good about winning? The absolute inability for many UK fans to give credit to other programs is why so many people root against UK openly across the country.  This should be a celebration for you guys. Instead, I hear all this ranting about how Louisville doesn't deserve to be in the Final Four, yadda yadda yadda. Why? They won their regional tournament. Why cheapen the accomplishment with disrespect? And don't you get tired of being relieved to win, instead of actually enjoying it? 

UK fans have great passion and love for their program. Rightly so. I just don't get having all that and feeling the need to run down everyone else. It's not necessary. Part of being a fan is actually enjoying the battle. Going into a game knowing that your opponent might win should put your mind in a place where you can immerse yourself in the game and be truly excited. Everyone knows you have a great team, now live up to that by being great fans. 

Louisville fans......stop bellyaching about the analysts picking against the Cards. The Cards are not flashy. They don't have a lottery pick (yet, Dieng in 2013?) playing and the offense is very average. They don't have a play of the year candidate. There is a reason these people pick against Louisville, because on paper, Louisville doesn't look that appealing. Yet, Louisville wins games. Be happy with that. The one thing that UL fans get to experience (generally speaking), that UK fans don't, is the pure joy of the win. Going into every game, it's hard to expect Louisville to win. It's not a foregone conclusion, so the anxiety is higher and it gives us an elevated sense of drama. That's something you should enjoy. Having a target on your back that stems from expectation dampens some of the fun. It's pressure. The Yankees are always good. Their fans expect to win. And when they do win, it's great, but it's not like when a team that comes from nowhere does. It can't be. And please, don't waste your time telling UK fans how overrated their team is and such, because it's not true. Why detract from your own fandom by trying to make someone else angry? 

Louisville fans should be having the greatest of feelings right now. A team that had lots of pre-season promise had troubles with injuries and was written off. Then they came storming back and fulfilled the promise of November with a run in March! That's awesome and it's fun to watch materialize. Soak it in. You don't need a UK fan, or Dick Vitale to tell you that the Cardinal program is one of the best seven or eight of all-time. It is and no amount of smack talk can change that. Maybe we can turn our attention towards just enjoying watching this team bring their lunch bucket to work! You know that Siva, Behanan,and Dieng are going to play as hard as they can. If they win, great. If they lose, hell....they made it to the Final Four! No matter if it's UK or anyone else who stops the winning streak doesn't take away from what the team accomplished. Expectations left the arena weeks ago. Ride the tide!

I know some of that stuff won't be agreeable to you guys.....maybe none of it will be. I am simply trying to soak up the media attention this game is getting and the excitement of a rare event. And, this is truly an event. There is no way that a Duke / UNC game would have created quite this type of drama (unless you left the TV on ESPN 24/7, with their ACC fetish). This is special. I hope both teams play great. I hope Louisville wins. If they do, it won't change my mind a bit that UK is a top notch program. The Wildcats and Cardinals have both proven that they have staying power and  have put together a run when it counted most. No team gets to the Final Four with an easy path and no team makes it that doesn't deserve to be there. This week will be looked back on (or should be) by fans of both schools for years to come in a fond manner. The rest of the country will watch two schools, within 75 miles of each other play for the right to get to the championship game. How special and exciting is that?

The Big East: A tragically sad ending

I want to start this out by saying that you guys know I don't follow sports like I used to. Pro sports are pretty much out altogether for me and I've distanced myself from the college game too. What I'm about to lay down comes from my heart and a piece of my heart is given to Louisville Cardinal athletics, even if I'm not a hard core fan any longer. I've been asked about twenty times in the last couple of weeks what I thought about Louisville's situation and the Big East. I'd rather address how I feel about the Big East coming undone than talk about Louisville. The Cardinals are not in a great position right now. The fate of the schools sports programs hangs in the balance. I don't think things will ever be the same. 

So, here are my thoughts on the Big East athletic conference being torn apart;

This has probably been said a couple of thousand times, but what a shame it is to see this conference crumble from the inside. It's always been a really good, bordering on great, conference, so I don't mean just since UL came on board. This is one of the final nails in the coffin for college athletics as we know it, in my opinion.  Everything is about getting bigger to grab more revenue. I guess that's OK, but what about the college game? What about rivalries? What about the ability of the fans to travel to far away schools to attend games? Shouldn't that sort of thing matter in college athletics. We hear all sorts of talking heads, coaches, and league officials carry on about the integrity of college athletics, but rarely will they display that or loyalty when it comes to the almighty dollar. And we expect the players to show class, integrity and loyalty? Ha! Absurd. Get all you can get kids, because they are making their bones off your backs. 

Imagine if the SEC started breaking up in football. I think it would be awful if Alabama and Florida, pulled out of the SEC. What if Duke and North Carolina State left the ACC? Tradition is supposed to mean something in college athletics, isn't it? Pitt and Syracuse are Big East schools. It's their identity and their identities were built in a tough, exciting Big East conference that has seen greatness and actually was still going strong. The Big East was not unraveling. It was plundered and those who were plucked, rolled over with greenbacks dancing in their heads. And they did so, without a hint to anyone. Shady people, make shady deals.  

Since Louisville has been in the Big East, I have felt like it was a privilege as a fan to get to be a part of watching college history.   Now, we are on a path of super conferences that have no allegiance from one school to the next, nor is their any regard for geography, or their fans.  These conferences are going to generate a great amount of money from new TV deals and the mid-level conferences are going to suffer for respect and attention even more than they do now. 

I'll liken this to the take over of our culture by huge, multi-national corporations. Just swallow up the competition and leave just a few big entities to eat the whole fucking pie. The mom and pop stores are dying and so are the traditions and structure of college athletics as we remember it.  It'll be OK, I'm sure. Louisville may well get into the Big 12, which is a fine conference. But the Big East was something special and only in the last couple of years, did I feel like Louisville had finally arrived and was a true part of Big East tradition. Now, it seems as though the Big East will be either a glorified mid-level C-USA type of league, or it will crumble, leaving the football schools scrambling for a new home and a way to take on a new identity. 

I say shame on the school presidents and league leadership that goes out and plunders and make decisions behind closed doors, that will cheapen the college game. Let's just call it what it is. Professional sports. If the schools are not going to retain loyalty to tradition, why should anyone else? Let's just call it a spade America, we are right smack in the middle of the "bad ol' days". Nothing is sacred in the face of getting a larger piece of a finite pie.

Link to Josh Pennock article on sports and greed: CLICK ME