Welcome to the Friday Feedback, which in waiting on the Pat White Apology. Doesn’t that just seem like the next step? Especially from a guy who’s had to apologize for social messages and for social media missteps before?
To review, Pat White went on Facebook Wednesday and chimed in on the gone-viral photo of an Alabama recruit posing in front of a new car. White, who’s never been afraid to poke the state schools for one reason or another, said the car-to-recruits thing happens all the time at Alabama … and that he was offered a Corvette to play for the Crimson Tide.
Singularly, that’s an OK story. It’s one of those things athletes reveal in a moment. It can enlighten. It can add context to a story. And it can become the story. In the middle if May, it’s become the story.
And it’s ridiculous.
Here’s what I know from working through the years he was here: White was recruited by Alabama — he was a superstar in the state — but never very seriously. Schools were aware baseball was a very real possibility and schools knew White The College Football Player wasn’t interested in playing defense, or anything but quarterback, for that matter.
Did Alabama offer him a car? Well, I’d really like to know, but a passing tale on Facebook doesn’t cut it, which is a shame for White and Alabama.
I know this, too: Nick Saban was at LSU, not Alabama, when White was being recruited. LSU was another SEC school to pursue White and to not offer him a chance he found to be believable to play QB. Nevertheless, Saban was put in a tough and difficult-to-understand position yesterday when he was asked to comment on White’s claim.
Honestly, what’s wrong with that? If you sat me down, explained the background to me and said, “…and now a reporter is going to ask Saban in public in front of cameras what he has to say about this. What do you think he’ll say in reply?” I can assure my guess would have been awfully close to Saban’s reply.
Anyhow, that response is being forced to become part of the summer-long Alabama v. WVU story line because, my goodness, I have no idea why. I get that Saban is going to defend his program, and that a former WVU player has slung a little mud at the program Saban oversees, but, come on, let’s not fabricate an angle here.
Here’s where I become the bad guy, but I’m wired like this and I guess I’m weird in that I want people to understand words can have repercussions and that such incidents have to be examined, but this story needs an ending, or at the very least a subsequent chapter.
White, now in the CFL, has to say, “Hell yes they offered me a car. I retract nothing.” If he’s being honest. He could also be silent, or be made to be silent, but that can also be damning because others are going to try to talk for and about him (and, yes, I understand the irony in my words).
Similarly, does Alabama have to give this all a look, if even ceremonial? Better than the NCAA, right? I don’t know if Alabama did what White said or if a booster lobbying at the behest or for the benefit of Alabama did what White said. I do know there’s almost no purpose or interview the guy who coached running backs at Alabama and didn’t actually recruit White — honestly, what was he going to say except what he said?
But the recruit’s photo, White’s words and Saban’s reply now combine with the perpetual suspicion that certain things happen in certain conferences. It wouldn’t be hard to take a look and say, “We found nothing. Blame Canada.”
Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, appearances matter.
(P.S. WVU added a first-team FCS All-American defensive end this morning. He can play right away and has one year of eligibility.)
SheikYbuti said:
Would whoever the Tier 4 representative is please tell Mr. Luck at the next meeting of the Fan Experience Committee that we, as fans, would like to experience more continuity in the basketball program? Thank you.
I’ll pass that along.
Continue reading…
