Dabo Swinney found himself in John Oliver's crosshairs recently when Oliver blasted the coach for his belief that college athletes shouldn't be paid.
Bill Bender of The Sporting News caught up with Swinney to get his response and found that Swinney doesn't subscribe to HBO, among other things.
"I never saw the segment. I have no idea who John Oliver is, and a lot of that stuff goes in one ear and out the other. I was made aware of it, but that comes with the territory when you aren't afraid to speak out and other people disagree with you."
Swinney respects Oliver's opinion and is not offended, but they are simply on opposite sides of one of college football's most-heated debates. Keep in mind this is a coach who spends most of the year trading barbs with Steve Spurrier. So backing down, well, that's just not gonna happen.
"I'm a big believer in the student-athlete part," Swinney said. "I value the education and what it provides for you. Football is a vocation. Only 1.67 percent of these athletes go on to the NFL. An education provides you an opportunity for a career. A lot of people just don't get that. To say they aren't getting anything is misinformed."
Bender accurately points out that Oliver probably picked the wrong guy if he was trying to build a case against entitled, greedy coaches.
He's the first college graduate in his family. He spent his first summer out of high school umpiring and cutting grass just to get a shot to play for Alabama as a walk-on. He eventually earned a scholarship, but he also left college with $33,000 in student debt. As Swinney puts it, "That was in 1992."
Maybe let's do the next half-hour special on student loan reform.
Swinney then worked as an assistant at Alabama from 1993 to 2000 and Clemson from 2003-08 - or 16 seasons - before getting that first head coaching job. He's a success story, and he's not the only one who feels this way (see: Oklahoma's Bob Stoops).
"I didn't get into coaching to make money," Swinney said. "I got into this for the coaching and teaching part. I got into coaching and teaching full time for $38,000 a year, and I was OK with that. That's one of the things with young coaches; you have to ask, 'Are you getting into coaching for the right reasons?'"
This is a problem that comes when prominent figures such as Oliver decide to step out and comment on something they're really not all that informed about. It's a surface view based on a few lines they've read in a news article, and usually when you base a bold, attention-grabbing statement on a surface view you're going to end up not looking all that good.
Not to say that we shouldn't be talking about this issue, and not saying there aren't good arguments on both sides. But Oliver or someone at HBO probably should've done a little more homework in this particular case.
A few Tuesday links:
-- Troy Aikman gives his thoughts on Chris Borland and concussions.
"I don't know what it was, and if that is all it was, and I put 'all' in quotation marks-that is not a lot in terms of head trauma relative to other positions," says Aikman, now the top NFL analyst for Fox Sports. "I use Daryl Johnston as an example. He played fullback [for Dallas], and every single play he was hitting someone with his head. These guys are the ones to me who are and were more susceptible. What we have seen is how offensive and defensive lineman facing sub-concussive hits that occur over and over repetitively are more at risk than the big blows."
"When I hear someone say I don't want someone playing the game, even though I gained a great deal from this game, I understand it. I know why people have reservations. I try to put that in its proper context. I don't feel I'm a shill for the game or for Fox. I am paid to give my opinion, and sometimes my opinion is consistent with the messaging of the NFL and sometimes it is not. I know there have been times I've said things the NFL office has not liked, but I think for me to be a voice that is respected, I have to be as honest as I can be. And I will say Fox has never come to me and asked me not to say something."
-- Jimbo Fisher says Jameis Winston is the victim of "character assassination."
WDAE hosts Tom Jones and Rick Stroud asked Fisher about NFL teams focusing on Winston's character issues. Fisher told the hosts that Winston's image was a product of media coverage that portrayed him as a bad person.
"Why is there a question?" Fisher said. "Because of the character assassination that he's lived through in the media, and the (misinformation) and half-truths that have been printed. What amazes me about this whole process is the un-professionalism of a lot of major newspapers, and a lot of major outlets that did not report the whole truth of the situation and only slanted it for their own opinion."
Fisher said one of the media's most egregious errors came when allegations of Winston accepting payment for autographs surfaced shortly after Georgia running back Todd Gurley was suspended for the infraction. However, Florida State found no evidence Winston violated NCAA rules, but Fisher said the damage in the media had already been done.
Fisher reiterated to WDAE that Winston's character should not concern NFL teams. It's the same thing Fisher has maintained about Winston since the Heisman winner started making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
"Jameis has great character," Fisher said. "Did he make mistakes? Yes. Did he make silly mistakes? Yes. I mean, he's still a 20-year-old kid. He and Johnny Manziel are the only two who have ever gone through that pressure of winning a Heisman (as an underclassman). Plus, he won a national championship. No one had ever done what he had done.
"Some of his mistakes come from wanting to be normal. … He likes being seen as a normal student, and not Jameis Winston. … That got him in trouble by making some poor choices. … It wasn't from malice, but just from a little bit of immaturity. He's still just 20 years old. He'll grow through that."
-- At Louisville, Josh Harvey-Clemons is eager to play again.
"It's been a growing year for me," Harvey-Clemons said in a recent phone interview. "I've been getting to know my teammates and getting to know the defense a lot better. I'm just excited for the opportunity to be back out on the field."
What has he learned the most about himself?
"I'd probably say I learned it's not all about me," he said. "Everything's bigger than me. It's about the team."
Harvey-Clemons figures to have a prominent role on a defense that must replace its entire secondary, one that created many big plays with its aggressive approach. He is expected to start at strong safety in place of James Sample, with an opportunity to play linebacker in the nickel package.
It is the same spot he played at Georgia, so there is plenty of familiarity. In his final season with the Bulldogs, Harvey-Clemons had 66 tackles, one interception and three fumble recoveries.
"Any time you have a guy with his size and length and his athletic ability, he can affect the game both in his ability to rush and his ability to cover," Grantham said. "He can be a playmaker for us. We're going to put him in that role and see what he can do."
-- Nick Saban stands by his decision to welcome Jonathan Taylor to the team.
Jonathan Taylor underwent psychological evaluations, counseling and other requirements and had done a good job with all of that leading up to the incident Saturday, Saban said. "I still think he's a good person. I think he has a problem and a circumstance and a situation that is not acceptable."
6:19: Saban on Jonathan Taylor: "I think you learn from every experience and we certainly learned some things from this one. I certainly don't condone that kind of behavior, especially when it comes to how females are treated, and that's something we try to create a lot of awareness for with our players and would certainly be very cautious about any player that any character problem, especially something like this, would be something that we would be very careful about in the future. But I will say this. We will continue to try to create opportunities for players and try to help them be successful. And even in Jonathan Taylor's case, if there's anything we can do to help him overcome his issues and problem we will still certainly try and help him be successful. But right now the guy just can't be on our football team."
And Mark Schlabach says the second chance never should've been extended in the first place.
At a time when the NFL and other pro sports have increased their awareness about domestic violence, following high-profile incidents involving Ray Rice and others, Alabama took a foolish chance on Taylor for one reason. After watching Ohio State's offensive line push around his defensive line in a 42-35 loss in the semifinals of the College Football Playoff, Saban wanted to make sure it didn't happen again.
So Alabama signed Taylor. If Taylor had managed to stay out of trouble -- and, oh, avoid criminal convictions and prison time for his previous arrests in Georgia -- he might have immediately bolstered the Crimson Tide's defensive front.
Make no mistake: Alabama's decision wasn't about rehabilitation and second chances. It was about winning, and now the Crimson Tide look like big losers -- from the top down. It's not like Alabama is Louisville, where Cardinals coach Bobby Petrino seems to take any SEC reject as he tries to build his program. The Crimson Tide have the pick of the litter when it comes to recruiting. For whatever reason, they chose a troubled prospect with fleas.
LW
This post was edited on 3/31 8:23 AM by Larry_Williams
