Let your 'boos' for Bob be heard
Letter to the editor
I am writing as a concerned alumnus hoping to do what I feel is my duty for my alma mater — to do whatever I can to help people speak out about the state of our beloved football program. Unless we are vocal the administration will not get the message that some changes are desperately needed. To those who would call me someone who places football above more important priorities, I need only say that the football program put this university on the map and has brought it a great deal of prosperity over the years.
Since its inception, the football program has enabled many young men to receive a top-notch education that they, otherwise, may not have gotten, and has provided us with a rallying point and a focus for renewing our bonds every autumn.
Make no mistake, the football program has fallen on very hard times; things will only get worse unless a change is made, immediately. I had the opportunity as a student to spend a few hours with Lou Holtz and came away firmly convinced of the man's integrity and commitment to the lives of the student-athletes he coached. Not only was Lou an unselfish educator, but an outstanding football coach who always got the most out of his players. I can't help but feel that Holtz was pushed out the door by someone I perceive as extremely arrogant, our athletic director Mike Wadsworth. In looking for Holtz's replacement, the lessons of the past were ignored and someone with no head coaching experience was handed the job.
This man, Bob Davie, did not even have enough common sense to realize that he could not fire an employee simply because that employee was too old — this was clue number one that we were in for a long ordeal. "Coach" Davie lost me the moment he began insinuating that the cupboard was bare and he needed to rebuild the program from the ruins of an emotionally unstable old man. The truth is that Davie is not fit to be his predecessor's waterboy, much less the head coach of the most storied program in the land. He has shown his incompetence and lack of leadership time and again, culminating in the debacle that was the loss to Purdue. The worst part about it is that Davie still doesn't realize that he failed to make BASIC decisions that are his job to make.
We need to demand that Fr. Beauchamp remove Davie and Wadsworth immediately. I do not believe it is a bad thing to boo the coach while showing support for the players — it is the only vehicle we have to effect change. I encourage each of you to search your hearts and if you agree with me, make your feelings known at the Michigan State pep rally. When Coach Davie takes the podium, let him and his superiors know how you feel. Perhaps they will be encouraged to do the right thing and correct this huge mistake.
Kevin Keane
Class of '88, Hammond, IN
September 13, 1999
All Viewpoint Stories for Tuesday, September 14, 1999
