Faith in Frank Haith? Why not?

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was not that long ago that we all asked “Frank Who”? When Mike

Anderson departed for

Arkansas

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coach in his back yard, we just assumed that everyone was going to

line up for the Mizzou job. Instead, we got a lot of candidates who

used the job to get a raise at their own school.

After a few

so-called big-name coaches passed on the position, Athletic

Director Mike Alden was in a tough spot. Like he did when he hired

the now all-time-winningest football coach in Gary Pinkel, Alden

found Frank Haith.

Haith did not

have a stellar record at Miami, and the local media wanted nothing

to do with him because he was not one of them. He was not a guy

they knew as a great guest on the radio, nor did Haith know

anything about recruiting the local stiffs. So he was quickly

rejected.

Enter the Miami

scandal – or was it?

Haith was

implicated with a booster at his former place of employment, the

University of Miami, who in the past has had a problem or two with

boosters and payments. This time it was basketball.

One problem,

the basketball team was not improving like most teams who have been

accused of cheating. Blood was in the water. The fans who had never

heard of him wanted his head. Some members of the media called for

his ouster and went as far as trying to put together their own list

of candidates to replace Haith. The call for him to come on their

radio or TV shows to refute the accusations was all that in their

eyes would have been acceptable.

Throw in the

fact that Haith had done a poor job in making inroads with the

local high schools and AAU programs, and it seemed like he was a

goner. I even wondered out loud if he could survive, as we all know

that some in Missouri knew a thing or two about a lynching and it

seemed like a neck tie party was on. Not so fast.

Mike Alden

called for patience and calm until the NCAA conducted a full-scale

investigation to see just what took place. Oh by the way, it was

too late to find a replacement as the season was just around the

corner.

As for the

team, say hello to your new coach, who was slightly different from

the former coach. Amid rumors of pending transfers, the players

gave it a shot and some shot it has been.

Don’t look now,

but your Missouri Tigers have been ranked as high as fourth in the

country in the month of January. They have played a fair schedule

and have resembled a team unlike anything we have seen since Norm

Stewart patrolled the sidelines.

Now there is

talk of Haith being a candidate for Coach of the Year in the

country. My, oh my, have things changed.

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If there was

ever a rush to judgment here it is in the flesh. I have still not

met Frank Haith and in a way I am glad I have not, as I have no

favor to ask nor ax to grind. As far as the glowing columns and

kiss-up interviews that have now become par for the course, I think

it would be best to inhale the moment and see what happens. The

investigation is still ongoing.

Haith’s team

plays like a team. They are undersized most nights and outnumbered

with respect to scholarship players, and yet they find a way to

compete. Team basketball is where it is at, and man would you like

to see more of that at any level. It is amazing what a team can do

when players buy into the concept, and Frank Haith deserves all the

credit.

With respect to

Mike Alden, Missouri Athletics has never been better in every

category. All programs compete, some programs now compete for the

top players in the country in a variety of sports, with football

leading the way. The facilities are top-notch.

And people of

color are treated better than in years past, when it was taboo to

set foot in Boone County. Bad days are not as prevalent as they

once were, and it is one of the reasons Missouri gets better

players in all sports. The Move to SEC will be a challenge, but

Missouri is well-armed for the challenge.

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All Star sham

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After the NFL

and the NHL had their All Star games last weekend, I think it is

now time to move on to something else. No one plays with any

intensity. They play not to get hurt, and I am all for it. No team

needs to lose a good player in a meaningless game. So why even play

anymore? Oh, don’t worry, the NBA All Star game is later this month

and it will not be much better.

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Incarnate Word just due

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Incarnate Word

girls basketball did it again, they defeated the No. 1 team in the

area, St. Joe’s Academy. It is almost an annual event these days,

and yet our local media – with the exception of Earl Austin Jr. and

most recently Frank Cusumano – have not given this program its just

due.

They play the

toughest schedule of any high school team of any sport in the St.

Louis area, and yet when they have a hiccup like loosing to a good

Lafayette team it is headline news. Funny, when they beat the

so-called anointed it falls on deaf ears.

Incarnate Word

features the best coach in the area who continues to send kids to

college, even at the Division l level, yet it doesn’t merit a

mention by most who cover the sport. No, I am not suggesting that

Bernie Miklasz do a Sunday column on a girls basketball team, but

surely someone could find the time to give these ladies and their

storied program their props.

Faith in Frank Haith? Why not?

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