I thought Haith's penalty was fairly legit. I mean, the NCAA has gotten over its righteous indignation that a coach would dare lie to them. And let's face it: that was the whole reason behind Pearl's show-cause. The NCAA wanted to prove a point, a high-profile target landed in their lap, and they took advantage. It had nothing to do with setting a precedent. It had everything to do with a bunch of egotistical attorneys and front office types who sit on the COI wanting to beat their chests a little bit. Of course everyone knows that the NCAA looks hypocritical as a result, but why would the NCAA has long since proven that it doesn't give a rip about public perception . . . because the NCAA believes it is above accountability.
Nonsense like this is exactly why the NCAA will eventually cease to exist or will be overhauled with all new faces. There's no rhyme or reason to their whimsical decisions. But let's not forget that the NCAA is enabled by university administrators throughout every major conference in America. The Pearl case is a perfect example. When the NCAA began "leaking" that Pearl was guilty of a bump infraction a few days after his tearful confession, an infraction that the NCAA itself didn't even uphold at the end of the day, and allowed the news media to paint a picture of a cheating coach who just couldn't help himself, the Pearl case became nothing but a witch hunt. Instead of standing up to the NCAA and giving them the professional version of a "BITE ME," Mike Hamilton and Jimmy Cheek threw the entire UT basketball team under the bus in an effort to win over public approval for a decision they thought they had to make. Whether Pearl deserved to be fired or not, that travesty remains the most shameful moment in the history of this school's athletics department and the fact that Cheek is still employed by UT continues to infuriate me. Oh, I know what the easy answer is: Cheek and Hamilton and the university had no choice because the NCAA would have hammered the basketball program back to the Stone Age if Pearl hadn't been fired. But until some schools start standing up to the nonsense, the few schools who can exert the most influence within the NCAA organization will continue to handle the reins of the hypocrisy.
I still believe Bruce's biggest mistake was coming clean. If he had just stood by his lie, as every other coach does in that situation, he would still be our coach today. But no, he had to admit his mistake, and he paid the ultimate price.
I'm still waiting for Dick Vitale to call for Haith's job. Any time now, dickie.
