Rutgers Coach Mike Rice Shown on Video Abusing Players – Should This Coach Keep his Job [POLL]

This is going to be a wacky comparison, but bear with me for a moment because it deals with those who have a certain control over “youngsters” and may themselves have “anger management” problems.

According to this:

A nanny working in Hoboken has been sentenced to three years in prison after being caught on camera abusing the 6-month-old child in her care, officials said.

Dechen Kyiden, 22, was sentenced in Hudson County Superior Court on Thursday after having pleaded guilty on Feb. 11 to endangering the welfare of the child, officials said.

The (parents of the child in question) viewed tapes and saw Kyiden dropping their son from a height of a few inches onto a blanket on the floor, the report said. As the child cried, Kyiden struck his arm four times, before kicking and hitting his buttocks, the report said.

When Kyiden was confronted, she said she wasn’t feeling well and had a headache, the report said.

So the excuse was the nanny had a “headache”, which gave her cause to abuse a 6 month old child.

Here though, we’re not dealing with children, and the coach isn’t a nanny.
But he is in charge of them, and to a certain extent they are under his tutelage and are therefore impressionable.

So when a video of the coach’s “motivation style” is made public seen hurling basketballs at the heads of players and calling them all sorts of obscenities; should the response be that “had a “headache”; that it’s his coaching style; or that his players and players today are just too soft?

And in view of such, should he be fired, along with the athletic director who’s been privy to the abuse all along?

Check out the video, and judge for yourself.

According to this:

Rutgers said it would reconsider its decision to retain basketball coach Mike Rice after a videotape aired showing him shoving, grabbing and throwing balls at players in practice and using gay slurs.

The videotape, broadcast Tuesday on ESPN, prompted scores of outraged social media comments as well as sharp criticism from Gov. Chris Christie and NBA star LeBron James.

Athletic director Tim Pernetti was given a copy of the video in late November by a former employee. He suspended Rice for three games a month later, fined him $50,000 and ordered him to attend anger management classes.

In an interview with on Tuesday, Pernetti said university president Robert Barchi also viewed the tape last fall and agreed with the punishment.

But ESPN’s broadcast prompted an outcry, led by the governor himself.
“Governor Christie saw the video today for the first time and he is obviously deeply disturbed by the conduct displayed and strongly condemns this behavior,” spokesman Michael Drewniak said. “It’s not the type of leadership we should be showing our young people and clearly there are questions about this behavior that need to be answered by the leaders at Rutgers University.”

The Miami Heat’s James weighed in with a tweet: “If my son played for Rutgers or a coach like that he would have some real explaining to do and I’m still gone whoop on him afterwards! C’mon.”

Rice, who was hired by Pernetti three years ago, is 44-51 at Rutgers, including 16-38 in the Big East, after going 73-31 in three seasons at Robert Morris. The Scarlet Knights went 15-16 this season and 5-13 in the Big East.

Pernetti said that he understands why many are asking why Rice wasn’t fired after the initial investigation.

“I spent more time with that option on whether we should fire Mike or not than any other option,” Pernetti said. “At the same the results of the investigation where we ended up, the determination was made to suspend him. My biggest concern as the AD is that I am always trying to protect the interests and reputation of the university and that’s what makes this one so difficult. There is a lot of hindsight, 20-20, .... that there will be no other option than to terminate Mike. I made that decision. I am accountable for it. I have to live with it.”

Rice was Pernetti’s first major hire after getting the AD’s job.

Some other things to consider.

The video was furnished by former Rutgers basketball staff member Eric Murdock who’s contract was not renewed last year. You can’t help but feel that perhaps a disgruntled ex-employee may have had an axe to grind.

There really is too much wrong with this, not the least of which is the athletic director’s suspending the coach for 3 games a month later; as well as his defending the coach’s manner of motivation.

According to this:

Asked about Rice making aggressive contact with his players as seen on the video, Pernetti said, “I think in a couple of those clips there you see Mike demonstrating a technique where he’s making contact as he’s demonstrating a technique.

“And then there’s other incidents where putting your hands on a player is not acceptable no matter what. Yeah, there’s a line but I think the rule of thumb in general is never put your hands on a player.”

“Mike has undergone some pretty intensive sensitivity training as part of this whole deal and has dealt with, or continues to deal with a lot of those issues.
This is not the kind of thing that once the basketball season is over, penance is paid,” Pernetti said. “I’ve had a sports psychologist working 60-to-80 hours with him since the suspension took place. He’s going to be involved in all those communities that he may have or will offend on the going-forward basis.”

I know some coaches can be and have been “hard asses” in the past. One has to look no further than the antics of former Indiana coach Bobby Knight who threw a chair across the court during a game, and was once arrested for assault.

But that was then and this is now

But given these incidents do you feel this is a coach out of control; or are his players soft?

You be the judge.