First, a quick apology.
Yesterday after the daily links column ran in the morning, news started to swirl about Trey Burke finally making up his mind to the point where he began to move out of his dorm room. Then, the picture followed; a picture of Trey's dorm room packed into suitcases and trash bags. The picture ran on a few different websites, and was featured on Neal Rothchild's twitter page. Once I saw it, I ran it as a fanshot here.
I was busy most of the afternoon and returned to find a few strongly worded comments on the fanshot. Both Maize n Brew's own Alex Cook and LVS from The Only Colors mentioned that while the picture had shown up elsewhere, it still didn't seem like the appropriate thing to run. It is, after all, a picture of a college student's dorm room, and no matter what his relationship to the rest of us through the great sport of basketball and our alma mater, there is a line of personal privacy that should not be crossed..
After reading the comments and reflecting on what the picture was --- a college student's life packed into trashbags and suitcases, not a picture that embodied the state of the basketball program or a chance to make a witty remark --- I decided to remove the fanshot.
While I'm not sure I did anything wrong since the picture was already widely published at the point I posted it, I still don't feel any better about the incident. I was in college once and I would have been horrified to have my leaving the university publicized on the internet. Just because something is out there doesn't mean we need to post it, and in this case a brief description would have sufficed while saving Burke from having his private life go live on the internet.
I'm not too proud to admit my mistake, and I will work harder to ensure the privacy of student athletes in the future.
Time for some links:
Beilein comments on Burke situation
But according to Beilein, no decision has been made and Burke is still taking classes and preparing for final exams, which are about two weeks away.
More conflicting information from The Daily. From what it sounds like, Trey's parents and the coaching staff all want him to return, but Trey's desire is to leave.
NWI Times: Albrecht expected to sign at Michigan on Friday - Now that Burke is most likely out the door, there is now an opening for point guard, but it might not be there much longer. Indiana PG Spike Albrecht is expected to sign with Michigan tomorrow.
Michigan QB Recruit Shane Morris Hoping For Classic Rose Bowl Against Max Browne And USC - Shane Morris is already scouting out the competition for future Rose Bowl/BCS opponents. I like this kid's attitude.
Meanwhile in recruiting, target Greg Webb has chosen Penn State. This is a big pickup for the Nittany Lions, and is helping add to what is an impressive class.
Potential Candidates For Head Coach Of The Michigan Women's Basketball Team - with Kevin Borseth's resignation as head basketball coach of Michigan's women's basketball team, Swish Appeal runs down some potential names to replace him.
Holdin' The Rope: Profilin' the Tide: The Offense
It's easy to forget about guys like Darius Hanks, Marquis Maze, and Brad Smelley when discussing Alabama football, but they were not insignificant pieces of Alabama's prodigious success last year.
Holdin' the Rope takes a look at Bama's offense overall. The good news is, the Tide have a lot to replace at receiver. The bad news is, the offensive line is so good they might not have to worry about throwing the ball.
Spring Practice Presser Transcript 4-5-12: Al Borges - Borges's take from spring practice so far: the tight ends look improved, the offensive line should be good to go, and Fitz is The Guy at tailback.
Bobby Petrino Had a Passenger With Him - A weird situation growing even weirder. Petrino's motorcycle accident now includes a passenger that just happens to be a 25-year-old former volleyball player that just got hired on as football staff. You can almost hear the reactionary, moralizing sportswriters licking their lips. With Petrino being placed on administrative leave last night, this situation doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon.
Solid Proposal for Non-Playoff Bowl Games
In essence, B.C.S. officials would consider the creation of a 10-, 12- or 20-team postseason event. The goal would be to create top-tier bowl games from the teams not included among the four-team playoff "with the aim of providing the most evenly matched and attractive games that make geographic sense for the participants."
What to do with the rest of the bowl structure once a playoff is implemented? Pre-Snap Read runs down a very good option to ensure competitiveness and interest.
The murky water of chastising and celebrating NFL violence
But there's a bigger story here: the laughable notion that anyone can change an ingrained culture of violence overnight. Any parent knows that kids never listen the first time — it takes four or five times, and usually a raised voice or a threat, before they heed your wishes. Players and coaches are wired the same way.
Bill Simmons on the ingrained culture of violence in the NFL, and the slow path to change.