As I am preparing to watch another bowl game this holiday season, the biggest issue in the headlines is not who wins the National Championship, but the issue with Mike Leach, Craig and Adam James, ESPN, and the Texas Tech Red Raider football team.

That situation reminds me a little of my football days, only mine is on a much smaller scale.  Of course after the short story from my glory days, I offer my opinion on the whole Mike Leach situation.

When I was playing football in high school, we had parents that were involved with the team.  Some of it was good involvement, but some of it was not.

I remember that we had dinners for the senior football players each Thursday night before the game on Friday.  Parents supplied the food for the senior players and the dinners were held at a park or at some players’ home.  Parents also helped with the pep rallies and home coming week festivities.  This was the good parental support for the football team.

Then we had a couple of players whose parents thought their sons were better players than they really were.  They showed up at practices.  They talked to the coaches.  They talked to players.  They complained to the coaches when little Johnny did not get enough playing time, although little Johnny did not want to put forth the effort.

During the first game of the season, one player (a defensive end) was getting run over time and time again when the offense ran a play his way.  He was the type of player who felt that by his last name, the tackles would come easy and he was a star.

After being talked to by the coaches, it continued to happen.  The coach pulled him and put in another player.  We started stopping their offense and we won the game.

The father of the player who was pulled believed his son was a better player than he actually was.  This man was well-known in the community and had some clout with the school.  After the game the father confronted our coach outside the team bus.  The yelling grew louder and louder with the father yelling at the coach for pulling his son from the game.  Finally I remember the father of the player saying he would see to it that the coach was fired.

And he was.  That was the last season for that coach at my high school.

The issue between Texas Tech and Mike Leach is a lot like the story described above.  Of course, we’re talking millions in a contract for Leach and money for Texas Tech, whereas a small high school in the Midwest is not close to the same level, but the parents are just alike when they think, that by their names and status in the community, their sons will be given the job without much hard work.

Texas Tech head football coach Mike Leach had a player (Adam James) who has a father with some clout and national name recognition (Craig James of ESPN).  Craig James was described by Mike Leach as meddlesome and used his position to try and get his son more playing time.  Adam James was injured and claims he was confined to a dark room because of the injury.  Leach says Adam James “was lazy and acted like he was entitled to special treatment” much like the player I described from my high school days.

Texas Tech suspended Leach and then fired him a day before he was due $800,000 bonus, although Texas Tech football had the highest graduation rate in the Big 12 football conference and never had a losing season under Mike Leach.  They also appeared in nine consecutive bowl games, which means big money to the school.  Big money.

Unlike the issue with my high school football team, the James family was a whole cable network (ESPN) in which to have the family friends state their case.  Mike Leach can’t get a fair shot with ESPN and the James family supporters.  It was a bad move for him to grant an interview with ESPN which reportedly only aired five minutes of a 38 minute interview.

In my opinion, ESPN should distance itself from direct reporting on this incident, because their employee is involved.  Although they are just a sports network, this was poor journalism.

Like many other things, this will be settled in court.  The facts will come out.  Both sides will be losers, as will Texas Tech and their fans. Leach’s former assistants and team officials will turn on him, because they know their paydays with Leach is over.

Ironically, Adam James is now well-known for this, and not for what he can or cannot do on the football field. But, I’m sure the family friends at ESPN will help him gain notoriety once he plays for a coach who listens to his daddy.