CINCINNATI -- Bob Huggins is coming back to college basketball in late August, which is good. College basketball needs Huggins, and coaches of his ilk.
But not too many of his ilk.
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| Bob Huggins looks contrite as AD Bob Goin (foreground) announces his return Thursday.(AP) |
Huggins is coming back for the very reason he is widely disliked -- because Cincinnati basketball believes in second chances. Huggins was arrested June 8 on charges of drunken driving, then placed on indefinite suspension June 12. That suspension will end Aug. 27. The school made the announcement Thursday, no doubt earning another round of raspberries from those whose ability to loathe exceeds their ability to love.
A second chance is a great thing. If you're honest, you can admit you've screwed up. If you were fortunate, someone gave you a second chance. For years Huggins has given second chances, and on Thursday, he received one. He looked tan, and he looked grateful.
"I just want to say I'm deeply appreciative for the way the university handled my situation and allowed me the opportunity to return to a role that I love, that being the head basketball coach here at the University of Cincinnati," said Huggins, who took no questions.
Beyond the suspension, the only contractual punishment is a pause on Huggins' automatic four-year rollover, meaning his contract expires after the 2006-07 season. But that punishment -- like the suspension itself -- is without teeth. Cincinnati athletics director Bob Goin said Huggins could earn back that fourth year, and he could do so at any time.
"That's the great thing about contracts," Goin said. "You (re-)write something, and you can do it again."
The bad thing about contracts? They leave a paper trail. Goin actually seemed to gloat when he told a reporter that any conditions Huggins must meet were kept off paper.
"I don't know that I would share any of the conditions," Goin said. "That's why they were done verbally."
Clever, clever.
As for Huggins, returning in late August means he will have been suspended for 11 mostly unnecessary weeks. It's like a major-league baseball pitcher getting suspended for 10 days -- but taking his turn in the rotation the day before and after the suspension. It looks worse than it really is.
Goin said there were "no hidden agendas" behind the timing of Huggins' return, saying it was irrelevant that Huggins won't miss any practice. What Goin didn't say was that the timing of Thursday's announcement will reassure the next wave of Cincinnati recruits that, yes, Huggins is coming back.
Thursday's announcement also reinforced Cincinnati's policy on second chances. That's great for Huggins and wayward players everywhere, and it's great for the system at large. But it's not great for coaches competing with Huggins.
Everyone recruits with handcuffs, though some are tighter than others. Some schools allow their basketball program one academic "exception" per year, which means accepting a recruit whose academic background normally wouldn't merit admission. Some schools allow two exceptions, or three, etc.
At Princeton, which competes in the Ivy League, a player has to be as academically exceptional as everyone else on campus. At Stanford, which competes in the real world, a recruit almost has to have a Princetonian transcript as well as a pristine background.
At North Carolina, recruit JamesOn Curry was released from his scholarship after pleading guilty to felony marijuana charges. Oklahoma State had no such qualms, which is why Curry will play for the Cowboys this season as a freshman.
Every school has its stance, and that's fine. They're like fingerprints and snowflakes, no two being the same.
Under Huggins, Cincinnati basketball also has a stance: Everyone's welcome. The Bearcats have become college basketball's recycling bin, which means the program is going to smell badly at times. If you're offended, hold your nose or don't get near it.
As for Goin, he can't smell a thing. He threw around words like image and integrity Thursday, saying he had told Huggins that Cincinnati basketball should be a source of pride. Goin told the media that it already was. He sounded sincere.
"Yes, yes it has," Goin said. "There's been mistakes made, you know? There's been mistakes made, and we're not happy about it, but we don't cover those mistakes up. We take them head on, and I'm proud of that, but it's a program that has brought tremendous light on this community and on this university, and we are proud of it."
Huggins has turned Cincinnati basketball, and therefore the entire Cincinnati athletic department, into a lucrative Big East program. Along the way he has made it clear that if a recruit can play basketball at the highest level, meet NCAA academic requirements at the lowest level and elude felony charges, a scholarship awaits. If Huggins recruits with handcuffs, they're the size of a Hula Hoop.
Please, no Huggins-and-handcuff jokes. It's not funny. In recent years, several Bearcats have been allowed to play after being accused or charged with violence against women. That's a credit to innocent-until-proven-guilty, but it's a sucker punch to fair play.
That's the crux of any discussion of Huggins and Cincinnati basketball relative to the rest of the country. While the likes of Princeton, Stanford and North Carolina are recruiting into a headwind, Cincinnati's open-door recruiting policy puts the wind at its back.
That's great for a kid who needs someone like Huggins to give him a chance. Like it or not, Cincinnati serves its purpose on the college basketball landscape.
If you don't like it, don't stand downwind.
