ND has gone too far!!
January 23, 2007 10:39 am by Coach OThe dismissal of PG Kyle McAlarney from the University of Notre Dame is a major injustice to both the student and the men’s basketball program.
Now, I don’t condone drug use nor do I feel that McAlarney should not be punished for having marijuana in his car during a routine stop. As an educator and former coach I do feel that student athletes should be held to the same standards as all other students. And as a coach, I would have done exactly what Coach Brey did in suspending McAlarney immediately and possibly for the remainder of the season. I commend Coach Brey for his quick and definitive action.
Where I have a problem is the fact that this occurred off campus at the corner of Grape and Douglas. About 5 miles from the campus. He was put on one year probation and made to do community service and attend classes. That is fine. After one year his record will be clean. He has no history. If he had been caught by ND police on campus with drugs I agree that the school has every right to expel him. What he was charged with by Indiana State Police is a misdemeanor. What would have happened if he was stopped in his hometown in Long Island? Would he have been expelled? What if it was a student who was not an athlete? From the article in the South Bend Tribune he may reapply for next year. I wouldn’t blame him for going elsewhere.
This smacks of the expulsion of Julius Jones for being in a dorm room of a female after 9PM a few years ago. Jones did reapply after a year out of school and the rest is history. But that was an on-campus incident. This was not.
I just feel that this was not a university issue. It was handled very well by both the authorities and Coach Brey. Suspending him for the season would have been fine. Expelling him is an injustice that will affect recruiting in what is already a very tough area for Brey what with admission standards being what they are. Will a top recruit choose another program where, if they make a mistake will be dealt with in a much fairer and less embarrassing way?
Only time will tell,
Categories: Commentary, Notre Dame, Coach O
4 Responses to “ND has gone too far!!”
Amen. I couldn’t agree more.
The contrast to the UCONN fiasco last year is pretty astounding: theft on campus suspends you for either half a season the full season at UCONN while marijuana possession off campus gets you expelled at Notre Dame.
Donald
As a lifelong fan of ND as well as others…… I just think that if I was a high school senior and was being courted by the Irish as well as others, I would think twice or three times before committing to a school that cuts loose someone who needs help rather than to support him.
We all have done things that would have gotten us thrown out of Notre Dame at one point in our lives. I wish the team and Coach Brey well for the rest of the season and they will need it. They have a tough road ahead of them beginning with tonight at St. John’s……
I see them as an 8 or 9 seed at MSG in March, where they could have done much better if ResLife would have stayed out of it and let the coach deal with his player. I feel Brey would have suspended KMac for the season anyway, just don’t feel that the administration had any right to do this.
As far as UConn, I think we all realize that there is a much different set of rules. Even different for starters and bench players.
It’s incredibly shortsighted to respond to these types of problems by kicking them to the curb. I’m sure that many people see a glaring double standard in the way that UConn handled Williams and Price recently, but I prefer to hold out the hope that those guys have become better people by being rehabilitated rather than discarded.
On the court, McAlarney was a huge contributor. ND had started so well, but the season will almost assuredly be a disappointment by the end. Redemption after last year’s incredible close-game record was in hand.
Dan’l B
I agree with you that these problems shouldn’t be dismissed. And I really hope that you are right about the future of the UConn players. I also agree with Donald that these are not the same situations because the UConn one happened on campus and the Notre Dame one did not.
I would have suspended McAlarney for the season if I were the coach. Basketball was not my issue or point here. Dismissal from the University over something that happened in another jurisdiction is what I was referring to.
This will hurt ND hoops this year no doubt. It showed in Brey’s comments (he is sworn to not discuss the situation by the administration) about a dagger in the heart as well as the sluggish beginning last night vs. SJU. Can they recover? Who knows. What I do know is that if they can’t play on the road they are doomed to finishes like last night which was frighteningly similar to last season.
Care to comment?