Taking a stance on Sampson
One of the best features of this new blog format is the comments that can be posted with each article. Now, until hoops season begins (less than three weeks!), I don't expect the comments to pour in. It's hard to get too riled up over something until the games begin. Otherwise, that's what message boards are for.
But this was message waiting to be approved. And it's impossible to ignore.
"Maybe I missed it, but how do you not write about Kelvin Sampson. A second set of violations in 17 months all while getting a pay increase to go from Oklahoma to Indiana. He was making 1 million] at OK and now is making 1.1. Not to mention he blamed everything on poor cell phone reception at his house. This guy should be exposed." -- Ben, Indianapolis.
Sampson's punishment for violating NCAA imposed sanctions on phone calls -- related to when he made 577 impermissible calls in a four-year period while coaching Oklahoma -- was the loss of a $500,000 raise and Indiana losing one scholarship for next season. But the calls for his job started Monday with Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz, who said the school shouldn't cut the coach any slack because this wasn't the first time Sampson broke these rules.
A slight majority of Star readers backed Kravitz's column. Seems they too don't want a coach who can't follow the rules. Others said it wasn't a big deal, though it should be pointed out Indiana fans were/are fiercely loyal to Bob Knight because of his success. Sampson, who led the Hoosiers to the NCAA Tournament in his first season and landed one of the country's top recruits for this year, seems to be building the same kind of support, though some scoff at breaking a "phone" rule.
Should Sampson be fired? It goes back to Kravitz's point -- how can you employ a coach who broke the same rule he broke before? What's to stop him from breaking it again and thus reflecting poorly on your school, again? If you're Indiana, it's the Knight syndrome all over again, where you keep giving out slaps on the wrist and lose a little bit of your self-respect.
But if the school thinks Sampson's explanation that he unknowingly broke the rule is genuine, then keep him. Just don't expect any sympathy from the NCAA or the fans if he does it again.
