Poor Sports? Ohio State and Illinois Fight and Mike Leach Bad-Mouths Officials
Another crazy weekend for college football…and maybe the season is getting to people, because there sure have been some poor sports. After the Ohio State game (they lost) players from both sides had to be broken up by the police, as they went for one another’s throats. Ok, OSU, you lost. It sucks. Believe me, I understand. But can’t you just lose with grace? You can still win the Big Ten. And Illinois? I’m sure those players were instigating things. Way to be poor sports, guys. It tarnishes your win.
And now more news about a poor sport. Mike Leach, the head coach of Texas Tech, bad-mouthed this weekend’s officials, accusing them of favoring Texas. He said that one of the officials lives in Austin (ref Randy Christal) does, and suggested that this means that he’s a Texas fan. A direct quote?
“Am I condemning the crew? Hell yeah, I’m condemning the crew,” Leach said.
That comment probably means a fine from the Big 12 and it may even mean that Leach is suspended. No word from the league yet. During his rant, he also mentioned that money may have a play in it.
I do understand where he is coming from. When you have two rivals like that playing one another, it’s tough to use officials that lives in the area. There will always be corruption in sports.
And yes, I’ll even go as far to say that MAYBE they were throwing the game Texas’ way a bit. I didn’t see the game, so I don’t know. But I do know one thing. Leach went about this the wrong way. You don’t rant and rave to the media about a problem you have. It makes you and your team look bad.
A better choice would be to contact the Big 12 about your concerns. And then, if that didn’t work, contact the NCAA. And then, if that didn’t work, go to the media with a calm, prepared, respectful speech abotu your concerns. You don’t angrily rant after a game.
College football needs to be shaped up. Too many people are losing respect for themselves, their teams, their conferences, and the game in general. Football is about a good time, not about rivalries so vicious that players throw pucnhes, refs throw games, and coaches throw fits.
Related Stories
POSTED IN: Ohio State, Texas, Texas Tech
2 opinions for Poor Sports? Ohio State and Illinois Fight and Mike Leach Bad-Mouths Officials
PSUgirl
Nov 12, 2007 at 10:03 am
I’ll admit that I didn’t see the beginning of the altercation between tosu and ill - but from what I saw (which, thankfully, wasn’t much), tosu players were surrounding the ill kids and not letting them move -
Most of the ill kids seemed genuinely happy and thankful for their big win - which, and I type this very begrudgingly, is a credit to coach zook.
Roger Carter
Jan 7, 2008 at 10:50 pm
There IS no way to deal with poor officiating. I just saw the title game tonight and I’ve never seen such poor calls from the officials.
So should Tressel calmly complain behind the scenes? I’d like to see how Woody Hayes would handle it. He’d have been at midfield tonight throwing things. And you know what? The bad calls would have stopped. Then and there.
Nice guys always finish last in this game. You have to put cheaters on notice.
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: