One of the most illuminating aspects of the Penn State University child-abuse scandal was what it revealed about big-time college football’s inbred coaching fraternity.
A fine example was provided by the comments of University of Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel, aired Wednesday in St. Louis on KFNS 590 AM—before Penn State coach Joe Paterno’s attempted resignation and ultimate firing.
“Would I have done more? I’d like to think I would,” Pinkel said. “But I don’t know. It’s so easy to sit back and start throwing jabs at people and evaluating everybody else. I usually don’t do that.”
Give Pinkel credit for honesty. And, I suppose, for accessibility, because he easily could have no-commented the story involving Paterno, his friend and fellow coach.
But really, you’d like to think that you would have done more than virtually nothing if a credible person alleged that one of your long-time assistant coaches was having sex in your locker room with a 10-year-old boy. You’re not sure?
You couldn’t say with certainty that you would have done the right thing—the only moral thing—and see to it that authorities were involved, that the alleged perpetrator was confronted, and that the boy and his family received protection and care? If this were to happen tomorrow in Mizzou’s locker room, those of us alums who support the athletic department—and, by the way, the rest of the world—would like to think there would be no uncertainty about what to do.
It’s not “throwing a jab” at Paterno to suggest his own inaction was reprehensible on moral grounds, even if he somehow met the letter of the law. It’s not a jab to reject out of hand the assertion that he was told “something sexual” happened but didn’t bother to get any details before passing the matter on to superiors. And that he never followed up after that.
If we’ve got the story straight, Paterno just returned to his X’s and O’s and never further concerned himself with the 10-year-old boy who had been sodomized in his locker room or, for that matter, with his longtime colleague Jerry Sandusky—the alleged perpetrator—who continued on, with Paterno’s full knowledge, working with young boys in an agency supposedly caring for foster children.
What was Paterno thinking? Was he turning a blind eye to this alleged sodomy out of loyalty to a friend? Was he worried about the reputation of his football program and, thus, his own reputation? Was he unconscious?
Pinkel didn’t speculate about any of that. But he did manage to mention—no less than three times in a short interview—that Paterno was a “good man.” He described Paterno as “one of my heroes in coaching,” and Pinkel pointed out that “he did nothing illegal.”
What a great opportunity to praise Joe Paterno.
At least Pinkel didn’t complain that “JoePa” was the real victim here.
SLM co-owner Ray Hartmann is a panelist on KETC Channel 9’s Donnybrook, which airs Thursdays at 7 p.m.
Commentary by Ray Hartmann
