Temple Head Coach John Chaney proved why he is still and always will be a hall of fame coach. On Monday Evening, Chaney announced he would be suspending himself for the Atlantic-10’s conference tournament following his actions in last week’s game against St. Joseph’s. Chaney, upset with officials not calling illegal screens, sent in a player he himself declared “a goon,” Nehemiah Ingram, to start sending a message. Ingram played four minutes and picked up five quick fouls that would make even Rodney Harrison blush. While Chaney’s actions during the game were on loathsome par with Claude Lemieux or Tie Domi, his actions following the incident were more representative of the class and dignity we are accustomed to seeing.
There is no question that Chaney used worse judgment than Eddie Murphy whore-hopping on a cool Hollywood night. If Chaney was 100 percent wrong in his actions, than he has to be 110 percent right in how he has handled the fallout.
Despite his post-game feelings, Chaney has been genuinely contrite about his actions, calling them “reprehensible.” He has apologized to anyone who will listen, and not in some made-for-TV Jason Giambi way either. Chaney looked the camera in the eye and took all the blame for what he did. He even told us what he did wrong.
Chaney has apologized personally to Bryant’s family, even though his mother reportedly refused to shake the legendary coach’s hand. It was after this meeting when Chaney decided to suspend himself again, this time to appease the appropriately-critical critics.
Chaney’s actions have brought out those who think he should be fired or resign. This is absolutely ridiculous. Chaney has earned the right to explain himself before the court of public opinion is allowed to act as judge, jury and executioner. There are those who compare the incident to the events surrounding the firing of Bob Knight. The events are comparably egregious, but where Chaney has stood up, apologized, and said ‘This is not who I am,’ Knight never made any such attempts. Knight was given a chance to show remorse, but chose to assert his hard-headed individuality and apologized more for the fact that he was sorry to part ways under the circumstances than for the fact that he choked more students than Ted Bundy.
Outside of fans of Ultimate Fighting Championship, you would be hard-pressed to find anyone who could offer the slightest support for what Chaney did. Luckily, UFC aficionados comprise a limited segment of the sporting population. The majority of us have come to understand that sports largely operate in a gray area where we can, and usually do, love the sinner and hate the sin. It is in this gray area that we realize we are not granting Chaney a second chance, but allowing him to use the one to which he is entitled.
