By Leland C. Abraham, Esq.
While baseball may have once been America’s pastime, few can argue that football has quickly replaced baseball as America’s sport of choice. As a graduate from a South Eastern Conference school, I was able to see first hand how important football is to the American Psyche.
There is a disturbing trend within college football in which very few African-Americans are given the ultimate leadership position, head coach. Out of 119 Football Bowl Subdivision institutions, only 6 have black head football coaches. This is a disturbing trend as most of these schools that refuse to hire black football coaches have a majority black football team. This problem was once seen in the National Football League. Several black assistants and coordinators were not getting interviews for head coaching positions, so the NFL instituted the Rooney Rule in 2003. The Rooney Rule requires that when a head coaching vacancy becomes available, the team must interview at least one minority candidate. Many saw the Rooney rule as reverse discrimination, but a statistical analysis of the interviewees suggested that prior to the Rooney Rule, very few African American or Latino coaches were brought to the table for an interview. Since its inception, the number of minorities in coaching positions jumped from 6% prior to the Rooney Rule, to 22%. This rule does not apply, however, if an assistant has language in his contract that states he will be offered the head coaching position when there is an opening. In 2003, the NFL fined the Detroit Lions $200,000 for its failure to interview a minority candidate when the head coaching position became available.
In college football however, there is no such rule. In fact, some of the most qualified candidates are not getting viable opportunities. Of the 6 black coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division 1), only one, Randy Shannon, is at a school that competes in one of the 6 major conferences; Randy Shannon is the head coach at the University of Miami, Fl. One of the more interesting coaching scenarios to occur during this past bowl season was the job search of Buffalo coach Turner Gill. Gill is a former Nebraska Quarterback who currently coaches at the University of Buffalo, a program that is in the mire of college football. After posting 4 wins at a university that has never been much of a winner, Gill was not interviewed when the Nebraska coaching job came open in 2007. Gill remained at Buffalo the following year where he took Buffalo to its first ever MAC Championship after beating Ball State in the MAC Championship game. Opportunities came open at Syracuse and Auburn. Of the two, Auburn would have been the most attractive opportunity as it is in the SEC, a major conference. Gill was passed over for the Auburn job in favor of Iowa State coach Gene Chezick. This sparked a lot of media controversy as Gill has won 7 games this past season at Buffalo whereas Chezick had won 5 games combined in two seasons at Iowa State. While the comparison of the resume would lead one to choose Gill over Chezick, Gill at least got an interview. Gill decided to remain at Buffalo.
There is another highly qualified coach who did not receive an interview this football year, despite all the coaching vacancies. Charlie Strong has been a successful defensive coordinator at the University of Florida for several years. He has been a successful component of two national championship teams, but has not received an interview. In a secret meeting with the athletic directors from 3 SEC schools, an ESPN correspondent discovered that the reason that Charlie Strong has not received any interviews is the same reason Turner Gill would not be hired in the SEC; they are married to white women.
It is surprising that in 2009, on the precipice of the nation’s first black presidential inauguration, the color of skin is still an issue. In the case of Gill and Strong, it is the color of their wives’ skin. Could the Rooney Rule help in situation like these? It is hard to say, but in the NFL, Herm Edwards who coaches the Kansas City Chiefs and Lovey Smith who coaches the Chicago Bears are married to white women. It would appear that the capitalism of the NFL has led owners to only care about who can get the job done whereas the college game is still subject to a “Good Ole Boys Club.” It is time for college football to adopt the Rooney Rule.
Legal Disclaimer: This site provides information about the law designed to keep readers informed of pertinent legal matters affecting the African-American community. But legal information is not the same as legal advice -- the application of law to an individual's specific circumstances. Although we go to great lengths to make sure our information is accurate and useful, we recommend you consult a lawyer in your specific location if you want professional assurance that our information, and your interpretation of it, is appropriate to your particular situation.
There is a disturbing trend within college football in which very few African-Americans are given the ultimate leadership position, head coach. Out of 119 Football Bowl Subdivision institutions, only 6 have black head football coaches. This is a disturbing trend as most of these schools that refuse to hire black football coaches have a majority black football team. This problem was once seen in the National Football League. Several black assistants and coordinators were not getting interviews for head coaching positions, so the NFL instituted the Rooney Rule in 2003. The Rooney Rule requires that when a head coaching vacancy becomes available, the team must interview at least one minority candidate. Many saw the Rooney rule as reverse discrimination, but a statistical analysis of the interviewees suggested that prior to the Rooney Rule, very few African American or Latino coaches were brought to the table for an interview. Since its inception, the number of minorities in coaching positions jumped from 6% prior to the Rooney Rule, to 22%. This rule does not apply, however, if an assistant has language in his contract that states he will be offered the head coaching position when there is an opening. In 2003, the NFL fined the Detroit Lions $200,000 for its failure to interview a minority candidate when the head coaching position became available.
In college football however, there is no such rule. In fact, some of the most qualified candidates are not getting viable opportunities. Of the 6 black coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division 1), only one, Randy Shannon, is at a school that competes in one of the 6 major conferences; Randy Shannon is the head coach at the University of Miami, Fl. One of the more interesting coaching scenarios to occur during this past bowl season was the job search of Buffalo coach Turner Gill. Gill is a former Nebraska Quarterback who currently coaches at the University of Buffalo, a program that is in the mire of college football. After posting 4 wins at a university that has never been much of a winner, Gill was not interviewed when the Nebraska coaching job came open in 2007. Gill remained at Buffalo the following year where he took Buffalo to its first ever MAC Championship after beating Ball State in the MAC Championship game. Opportunities came open at Syracuse and Auburn. Of the two, Auburn would have been the most attractive opportunity as it is in the SEC, a major conference. Gill was passed over for the Auburn job in favor of Iowa State coach Gene Chezick. This sparked a lot of media controversy as Gill has won 7 games this past season at Buffalo whereas Chezick had won 5 games combined in two seasons at Iowa State. While the comparison of the resume would lead one to choose Gill over Chezick, Gill at least got an interview. Gill decided to remain at Buffalo.
There is another highly qualified coach who did not receive an interview this football year, despite all the coaching vacancies. Charlie Strong has been a successful defensive coordinator at the University of Florida for several years. He has been a successful component of two national championship teams, but has not received an interview. In a secret meeting with the athletic directors from 3 SEC schools, an ESPN correspondent discovered that the reason that Charlie Strong has not received any interviews is the same reason Turner Gill would not be hired in the SEC; they are married to white women.
It is surprising that in 2009, on the precipice of the nation’s first black presidential inauguration, the color of skin is still an issue. In the case of Gill and Strong, it is the color of their wives’ skin. Could the Rooney Rule help in situation like these? It is hard to say, but in the NFL, Herm Edwards who coaches the Kansas City Chiefs and Lovey Smith who coaches the Chicago Bears are married to white women. It would appear that the capitalism of the NFL has led owners to only care about who can get the job done whereas the college game is still subject to a “Good Ole Boys Club.” It is time for college football to adopt the Rooney Rule.
Legal Disclaimer: This site provides information about the law designed to keep readers informed of pertinent legal matters affecting the African-American community. But legal information is not the same as legal advice -- the application of law to an individual's specific circumstances. Although we go to great lengths to make sure our information is accurate and useful, we recommend you consult a lawyer in your specific location if you want professional assurance that our information, and your interpretation of it, is appropriate to your particular situation.
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