Mike Gundy Defends His Players

I think he's right on, and I admire him for saying it. He was criticized by various media groups. From ESPN.com:

Football Writers Association of America president Mike Griffith issued a statement about the incident on Monday.

"I consider Coach Gundy's behavior completely inappropriate. It shows a lack of respect for the media and doesn't speak well for the university and the fans that he represents. Coach Gundy's actions have brought national attention and further scrutiny to the situation that could have been handled in a more private and appropriate matter."

The Association for Women in Sports Media issued a statement Monday night saying Gundy handled the situation in an "unprofessional manner" and that while he has a right to express his opinion, "his decision to air his objections in the form of a personal attack shows a lack of respect for all journalists."

Regarding the first: It is not true that Gundy showed a lack of respect for the media -- he showed a lack of respect for one journalist and one newspaper editor, not for media as such. Furthermore, he made an argument which justified his lack of respect, and that argument is right on. Anyone who treats kids that way doesn't deserve respect. Further, by handling it the way he handled it, he showed his players that he has their back, which, if anything, is the whole point of what he is saying.

To the second, I fail to see how he showed disrespect for all journalists. If you watch the tape, you'll hear people applauding as he leaves the press conference. Apparently some in the press appreciated what he had to say. He made a personal attack on a woman whose article was a personal attack. In other words, his actions are appropriately characterized as a defense of what is simple and good, in the face of those whose ignorance and faux-sophistication keep them from understanding the simplest of human relations of mother and son. The article itself is unprofessional, unprofessional and cruel, the product of someone who's never gotten out of the fluorescent lights of the newspaper office to see what real life is like and to learn about actual people. It is a shame that these writers associations would defend this. It shows -- but hey, we already knew it, I guess -- that the arrogance of the press has no limits.