Everyone is to blame

Knight's in trouble again. Ouch! Sorry, I mean Mr. Knight is in trouble again. I apologize for stating the obvious; my next column may be an expose claiming the kids driving SUVs around campus don't make their own payments. At any rate, it makes for good news, doesn't it?\n I got tired of hearing about Knight at times, especially when he pointed out the high graduation rates of his players whenever he got in trouble, as if that were something spectacular. What did they come to college for, if not to graduate? I don't go to the grocery store and brag about bringing home a gallon of milk. But, he wasn't able to talk his way out of this jam.\nI don't think he's a jerk. I think he has always wanted to be a jerk but couldn't get the job done. He's as guilty of the "Sure, I may act like a jerk 90 percent of the time, but I really have a heart of gold," public image as Howard Stern is. \nIs it his fault the media are all over him? Nah. I'll let you in on a secret. It doesn't take a whole lot of talent to be any kind of news reporter or columnist, especially a sports reporter. They're not really doing anything; they just write about people who do things. I think that's why they're so fascinated by him. \nSports enthusiasm in this country has simply gotten out of hand, especially sports reporting. Before I got rid of my cable I had seven sports news stations ' they didn't even show sporting events, they just talked about them. It's really sad there are sports columnists and reporters out there, many in Indianapolis, who make a living just taking pot shots at Mr. Knight. They're the ones who are really going to miss him and his antics. Let them go talk tough about the soccer coach and see how many people rush to the newsstand. And to those columnists and reporters who didn't have enough talent to do anything but alternately suck up to and condemn Mr. Knight? Well, I'd like to recommend the same treatment for them and the horse they rode in on.\nLet's get to the bottom line. Is Mr. Knight acting any differently than he has for the last 30 years? No. So what's different? Oh yeah, IU's not winning ball games anymore. If IU had won the NCAA tournament last year, Mr. Knight could have given that kid the "Stone Cold Stunner" and nobody would have said a word. Let's be honest. Do any of us IU basketball fans really give a damn about what Mr. Knight did outside of Assembly Hall? No. We just liked to watch basketball games. If the next IU coach starts winning, the memory of Mr. Knight will disappear faster than a chocolate chip bagel at a sorority house.\nKnight was not a revolutionary leader, or a social reformer or a president. He wasn't even a general. He was a basketball coach. Let us remember that. He was just helping kids learn to play a game. I think we forgot that. \nMaybe he did, too. \nEverybody's guilty here. Mr. Knight is guilty for not living up to an obligation he agreed to take on. He's guilty of letting his players down because he felt his ego was more important than they were. President Myles Brand is guilty of not taking a stand until an incident arose that brought the cameras back to campus. The media are guilty of feigning shock and indignation to try and get reporters' precious little faces on camera. And us, hell, we're all guilty for watching.