Eleven Warriors

I've always liked Rittenberg and find him to be fair to all the B1G universities. I don't think there is anything wrong with the article.

This is an absolute joke. The university's have the right to hire whoever they want. To grade them on their coaching searches and whether or not they included minorities in their search is utterly stupid. As it is to claim that the B1G is behind in the integration of football. We had scholarship minority players in the 1940s. Also just because more people of a certain ethnicity play a sport, it doesn't mean they should be putting out more top flight coaches. Look at the EPL, there are more American youths playing soccer than any other nationality, why is that we don't have any American managers in the EPL, Serie A, or La Liga? 

edit: Also how is this a problem? If you're qualified for the job you'll get it..

Also, considering that B1G schools have always been EXTREMELY progressive (some could say, TOO progressive at times) when it has come to affirmative action and creating opportunities for minorities (Gratz v. Bollinger, anyone?), I'd say this article is nothing but ESPiN sanctioned Big Ten smearing.

As a commenter posted, 12.4% of Americans are black. 12.5% of FBS coaches are black. That's pretty okay with most of America.

Seems like they are reaching a bit for something to write about here. I think you hire the person with the best credentials for the job regardless of race. I have a hard time believing any school in the B1G is discriminating against against coaching candidates over their race. If there was a guy out there that is best for that institution - he would be hired regardless of his race. Not to say that racism is gone, because its not gone...I just truly believe schools want to win badly enough that they wouldn't let skin color play a part in the decision.

Can we please stop saying, "Well, we elected a Black president so race can't be an issue anymore".   

@Rdubs: Agreed.

Diversity should not have a quota. Best man wins (yes girls can't be major college football head coaches, sorry)

A black AD Gene Smith hired a white coach Urban Meyer must be racist that article is a joke best person should be hired for the job period

As an African American I have to ask a question how many black coaches are applying for these jobs? It seems to me that a lot of black coaches shoot for nfl jobs..., but maybe that's because they feel it's more opportunity in the NFL who knows? In sports Im colorblind sports have broken so many color barriers.... As far as obama being elected so as a nation that means there is not racism <----that's trash but this is 11w not CNN and in here if your a buckeye then your family I've never been showed anything but love at the horseshoe

If Jim Tressel or Urban Meyer were black, there's no doubt in my mind that they would have been hired.  Coaching jobs go to the best candidate, period.  It's not like the Big Ten is some exclusive country club, the fact that two of our biggest programs have Hispanic and Black athletic directors (Alvarez and Smith, respectively) should stand as creedence.

Furthermore, the idea of "race," is a flawed concept if you believe in the "Out of Africa" model.  There's one species of Human currently existing on this earth.  We have genetic variability and predispositions based on geographical spread, but the idea that we're all different "races" is incorrect from an anthropological standpoint.  Should we be getting worked up at the lack of blondes coaching, or the lack of green-eyed coaches?  

I understand that skin color has been a basis of discrimination for a long time, but from every scenario dsecribed I don't believe that--at the time of the hire--a compratively weaker White coach was hired in favor of stronger Black candidate (save for Charlie Strong, but neither had any real head coaching experience), I'm also assuming here that there's no way Kevin Sumlin picks Illinois over Texas A&M, even if offered--I'd assume the B.O.T. had to know that those programs are not on equal footing.

Not to mention the fact that Marvin Lewis, Tony Dungy, Romeo Crenel, Mike Tomlin, Lovie Smith, and Leslie Frazier could have their pick of the litter in college football.  Pretty sure Singletary could score a mid-level program if he wanted to.  

Also, you have to think that whenever Meyer leaves Columbus, though Fickell will be a favourite  for succession, they're going to look very long and hard at one Darrell Hazell, provided he's had a successful career and moved up from Kent State. 

This article is ridiculous. The best man for the job should good the job. Not if you are black or jewish.

This topic makes my head hurt.  The population of players in DI is more than half black.  I'd also say at the BCS level it's closer to 75 percent, but I have no numbers to back that up.  So, with this majority people don't see a problem with roughly 12.5 percent of the head coaches also being black? 

Institutional racism/sexism will always exist because people in power are human.  There are all types in charge of businesses, politics, churches, and universities.  Some are progressive and realize that the dumb stereotypes of the past are just a bunch of hogwash, and others will cling to ridiculous ideas about what blacks, women, muslims, homosexuals, asians, etc can or can't do. 

Laws can be passed, rules can be changed, the people can be ridiculed, and we'll still have some Ignorant A-holes in place in positions of power that will allow their simple minded stereotypes to dictate how they lead their business, church, office, or school. 

@HODGE

As a male grad student in Aero at OSU, I can tell you that a higher percentage of women in aerospace engineering would be welcomed openly.

@OSUAERO - Haha, odds are you've met her!  But, I'm very sure this is the case, the point I was making is that it's not Ohio State's fault that women aren't enrolling in the major.  I see it as the same with black coaches in the NCAA, I just don't see the numbers in the assistant coaches to see more black coaches promoted soon.  Just like you'd welcome more women into the major, the vast majority of America would welcome more black coaches into the fold--but we're not seeing an influx from either group on either side.  Now, if the small population is being denied by the color of their skin or their gender, we have a problem--but until I see such motions, I refuse to believe that racism is a prevalent force among the hiring of college football coaches.  There's too much money riding on these teams for the best man not to get the job.

I think too many of you are taking this article to say things that it does not. It isn't an opinion piece--Rittenberg doesn't give his opinion throughout the entire article--and simply focuses on the current state of an issue and the musings of prominent figures within college football.

I don't think this article is an ESPN hack piece on the Big Ten. The article references numerous instances in which the Big Ten has been a leader in providing opportunity and promoting equality.

"The first two African-Americans to coach in a major FBS conference worked in the Big Ten... Michigan and Indiana had African-American football players in the 1890s... Michigan State became a pioneer in offering opportunities to African-American players from the segregated south in the 1960s."

It also states that the Big Ten has received high marks on their hiring report cards from diversity advocacy organizations, even without hiring African American coaches.

If anything, I think the article brings the reader to central question: As a conference that has been a leader in this arena, why aren't we leading now? Richard Lapchick, the director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports, states the following:

"...the Big Ten is so important athletically and academically as institutions of higher ed, they have a special place. It places them in the position that they can influence other schools to follow their lead.

If they're not leading in this area, nobody's going to follow."

Ultimately, your opinion on this article depends on whether you think the Big Ten is doing enough and--more centrally--if you feel this issue has enough merit to require our conference to lead.

Scott - okay, you've got me interested. Is the Big Ten doing enough and, if not, what should the conference do, specifically? Are you suggesting policy guidelines?

How might the "conference lead" when we're talking about the hiring processes and decisions of individual universities?

Please clarify. We all tend to use words like "leadership" when describing institutions like the Big Ten, which can be a bit dicey. Which leader(s), specifically, is supposed to do what, and how will the various actors all contribute to the conference being seen as "leading"?

@Run_Fido_Run Those are all excellent questions and ones that are better suited for someone with a salary the likes of a Big Ten Commissioner.