Bobby Knight… Please go to Georgia!

Supposedly in America, we appreciate people with strong moral character. People who act politely, help the elderly woman across the street, and open doors. Think about the most respected people you know. What are their characteristics? They are loyal, dignified, kind, giving, loving, and otherwise completely not full of themselves. Now read this list of Bobby Knight digressions.

1999 - Knight attacks another diner in a restaurant parking lot after the diner accuses him of making a racial comment (inside the restaurant) about blacks. Knight put a choke hold on the other man, leaving marks on his throat. Charges were never filed.

1997 - Player C. Jason Collier leaves the team citing Knights constant verbal abuse. A column in the Indianapolis Star the next day, suggests Knight should quit.

1997 - After a home loss to Purdue, Knight is heard chewing out an empty locker room.

1993 - Knight kicks his own son, Patrick, during a game with Notre Dame and receives a one game suspension.

1988 - Knight tells Connie Chung, "If rape is inevitable, relax and enjoy it." He later claimed his comment was out of context. One has to ask, what type of context could he possibly have used that would have justified such a comment?

1987 - The university was fined $10,000 and Knight received a reprimand for banging his fist on a scorer's table during a game with LSU in an NCAA Regional Tournament.

1985 - Knight throws a chair across court during a game with Purdue and is suspended for one game.

1983 - In Philadelphia, Knight shoves an LSU fan into a garbage can during a scuffle at the NCAA finals.

1979 - Knight threw a student newspaper photographer into some bushes because the student took his picture while he was having an argument with a bicyclist about the right-of-way. (P.S. thank Ken Kreps whoever you are).

This list doesn’t include the reasons for his firing at Indiana, namely: Choking IU player Neil Reed during a practice; and grabbing and berating an IU student by their arm after the student yelled, “Hey Knight, what’s up?” Or his physical beating of the Texas Tech player above.

Yet despite all of these transgressions (and countless others not listed here), ESPN and its peers continually display Knight as a man of honor, integrity and an example of a fine human being. Mike and Mike in the Morning praise him like he’s Mother Theresa. And don’t even get me started on Dick Vitale. And yes, maybe Knight is a saint behind closed doors. But, in the public, he is a hypocritical ass, with the moral integrity of Bernard Madoff.

I should say that I have no personal ties to Indiana, so I don’t really appreciate the early Bob Knight years with the championships. However, I did attend college at Indiana at the end of the 90’s. I came from Chicago after witnessing the greatest basketball team ever (the Jordan Bulls) and tried to embrace the prestigious Indiana basketball program. Instead, I encountered a pompous, egotistical coach that put out below average basketball teams. When Knight got a technical foul for his childish antics, Assembly Hall seemed to be at it loudest- A sad and miserable image on a historic program.

Inexplicably, it appears that Bobby Knight may coach again. Somehow Georgia doesn’t care about Knight’s past. We look at players like Plaxico Burress and Terrell Owens and rightfully disdain their improper behavior. These players get fined, suspended and possibly thrown in jail in Burress’ case. Yet, Bobby Knight with even worse behavior is made to be a saint. Didn’t he accidentally shoot someone while hunting (or maybe that was just Cheney)? Honestly, isn't this story much worse than Plaxico's?

So I say go ahead Georgia, hire Bobby Knight. At least I won’t have to hear his rude ass on the radio or ESPN TV anymore.