Barkely Had It Right

Lets be serious, the good ol boyz ritual is very much alive in the south and will probably stay that way for a long time. It happens in everyday employment so why not college football? After Charles Barkley publicly lobbied for Buffalo coach Turner Gill to be hired as proofed that Auburn can get away from its persona that most southern universities carry, they hired Gene Chizik. Chizik whose Iowa State team earned a ten game losing streak was reportedly a better fit. Division I football is a ridiculous failure when it comes to hiring black head coaches. Must there be a rule similar to the NFL making it mandatory that teams interview black candidates? Yes racism is still alive and well and it is extra bold in the south. Look at Clemson and South Carolina. Clemson recently let Tommy Bowden go after years of disappointment only to hire the assistant coach Dabo Sweeney; makes sense right? Look at South Carolina and Steve Spurrier who replaced Lou Holtz. The fact is that most of these southern states would not be satisfied with black head coaches. They will praise the black players, but will not put a black man in the driver’s seat. It is mostly the same reason why the election polls shaped out the way they did in the south going overwhelming for John McCain. Older white people in these areas don’t see blacks as equals and probably never will.