Good article in TSN on Rick Neuheisel

[Blackadar]

I like TSN - by far - out of any of the sporting mags. It's substance to ESPN's style and the team-by-team reports are much more in-depth than most anything else found in print.

Anyway, they had an excellent article on Rick Neuheisel, the former Colorado and Washington coach who was fired for "gambling" - playing in NCAA College Basketball pools.

The spin is that he got a raw deal. It's clear he got permission from the school's NCAA compliance director that it was ok. The director wrote "The bottom line of these rules is that if you have friends outside of ICA that have pools on any of the basketball tournaments, you can participate." Then he got fired when the NCAA turned up the heat on Washington. Sounds pretty crappy to me.

I'd hire the guy - two 10 win seasons at Colorado and a 11-1 record at Washington. You know he's going to stretch the rules as far as they can go, but he's also going to win. Sounds like other coaches - Spurrier, Bowden, etc. - who also win on a consistent basis.

[SirFozzie]

Neuheisel should have an ironclad lawsuit against the school AND the compliance director.

((Ah TSN=The Sporting News.. for some reason was thinking tsn.ca)) :)

[CraigSca]

I read this article as well. From what I read, he was royally hosed by the NCAA and the compliance director.

And thus ends my "no added value" post. :)

[dawgfan]

Allow me to provide some differing perspectives on Rick Neuheisel; there's no doubt that he can be a very charming, funny and charismatic guy. As such, it's not surprising to see a writer fall under his spell and regurgitate Neuheisel and his lawyer's spin on his situation.

Neuheisel has some strengths as a coach - he appears to be a very good motivator, and if you have a team coming off a hard-ass old-style coach Neuheisel may provide some short-term benefit as a breath of fresh air and a new, more relaxed style. That benefit has not thus far proven to have longevity though, as both schools he's been head coach for have no better off at the end of his 4 seasons than when he took over (worse in the case of Colorado). While he likes to maintain a reputation as a good recruiter, and he has landed some big fish in his career, he's also had some issues. At Washington, while he signed a respectable number of linemen, many had grade issues and never got in, some were injured and never played and some were not highly motivated and dropped out or transferred. As a result, he ended up bringing in very unbalanced classes at Washington. Additionally, the "Neuheisel" recruit in general was more of a prima donna type and not in the mold of traditional "tough" Huskies of the past. At both Washington and Colorado, his teams by the time he left were thought of as "soft".

Neuheisel also has had issues staying within the rules as we all know. Add to that a perception by many in the coaching community that he's arrogant and he never paid his dues (he never held a coordinator position before becoming a head coach at age 33, he was one of the early $1M college coaches despite a moderate resume) and the issues he's had with the NCAA, and I can guarantee that any school that hires him as a head coach will immediately gain the intense scrutiny of the NCAA. His actions brought penalties and probation to the football teams at both Colorado and Washington. Had he stayed longer than 4 years at either school it's not inconcievable that the damage could've been much worse.

Regarding the betting pool; yes, the compliance director (and the athletic faculty rep and the AD who both approved the memo) screwed up by misinterpreting the rules regarding tourney pools. That said, Neuheisel knew what he was doing was wrong according to the NCAA - if you listen to the tape transcripts of his interview with the NCAA, in the first tape when he's still denying having participated in any pool (i.e. lying) he says (I'm paraphrasing from memory): "No, I wouldn't participate in anything like that - that would be gambling and would be wrong. I was just there as a witness with some friends." Neuheisel is only bringing out the memo as a way of trying to cover his ass - he hadn't read it in the first place. Beyond that, coaches every season are required to take NCAA compliance tests that determine how well coaches know the rule books. Rick's a smart guy - don't you suppose he had some clue that contributing a few thousand dollars in a Calcutta-style NCAA tournament pool might be frowned-upon by the ultra-paranoid-about-gambling-NCAA, especially given how he was already in their spotlight from his recruiting infractions?

He also exaggerates his 'loyalty' to the UW. He was approached and offered the job at Notre Dame, but he didn't stay at the UW out of loyalty - he was using the Notre Dame interest to get his contract renewed and improved significantly. Regarding the San Francisco job, most inside sources have said that not only did Rick not get offered the job, it was obvious within a few minutes of his interview that there was no way they were going to consider offering him - his interview was that bad.

I'm not a Rick-hater; I appreciate the 11-1 Rose Bowl season (including the win over Miami), I appreciate the way he actively tried to bring Don James back into the fold at the UW after his predecessor Jim Lambright had alienated James by firing his son-in-law from his coaching staff, I appreciate that he brought back the gold helmets (and was aware of how important that was to the fan base and players), I appreciate the way he handled the Curtis Williams tragedy. I met him once and found him to be warm, funny and very personable.

I also happen to think that Rick is flawed as a coach for the previously listed reasons and does not deserve comparisons to Steve Spurrier. I think the UW AD screwed-up the whole Rick situation and would've been better off negotiating a buy-out instead of firing him 'with cause' and sparking a lawsuit. I don't think it's a slam-dunk by any means that Rick will win his case, but the UW will end up spending a lot more money in lawyer fees defending themselves than if they'd just coughed-up a buyout in the first place.

I do think Rick got a raw deal from the NCAA - when Myles Brand essentially told the UW they ought to fire Rick just 3 days after the story had broken, and well before the investigation was close to completion, he forced the UW's hand. Rick's suit against the NCAA will be very interesting to monitor.

I'll get off my soap box now, but I'm sure TroyF would be happy to add his less than glowing opinion of Neuheisel...

[korme]

yep, good articles in there this week. no bias because of carson on the cover either ;)

[WSUCougar]

Great post, dawgfan.

[Dawgfan1980]

Amen Dawgfan, may those recruiting classes (Jimmy Newell anyone??) please graduate sooner rather than later. Another thing about The Rick, he is a master at spin, and should be in politics, he is that honest. I'm glad he and Babs are both gone