On Saturday’s Gameday broadcast, a significant contrast on the flag planting controversy was expressed between Coach Saban and Desmond Howard.
Saban’s comments: “Fining teams $100,000 is like worrying about mouse manure when we are up to ears in elephant shit. (Howard laughs while Saban remains serious)…I would be more upset with my team planting the flag because I think that’s disrespectful and doesn’t show much sportsmanship. You know you want to defeat the other team but this disrespect that everyone wants to show is probably not a good part of the game and I think you have to protect the brand…show sportsmanship so people can identify with the brand in a positive way.”
Howard then comments, “You guys agree with that, huh?”
Herbstreit then asks Saban: “Would you be more upset with the team that plants the flag or the team that reacts to it?”
Saban: “I would be much more upset with my team if it plants the flag because I think Coaches can control that.”
Howard then addresses Saban: “Well you know Coach, I am All about celebrating. They celebrate everything nowadays…If they win a game, that (flag planting) is a way of celebrating. I always have a problem with the reaction. If a teams scores a TD and the guys start doing their thing posing and say the other team comes in and starts a fight, like what happened with the flag planting, do you say that now you can’t entertain, the posing in the end zone? No. Cause they’re not wrong. You may not like what they did, you might not like that they planted a flag, but they’re not wrong. (At this point the whole crew stares at Howard with a blank expression). The people that go and instigate a fight, those are the people who are wrong. So, though I’m not crazy about it, I would have a bigger problem with my players going out there and starting a fight. Your players would never do that. Our teams would never do that because we had too much respect for our Coaches. We would just take that L.”
Howard goes on about the pepper spray and how the Columbus police stepped over the line. According to Howard, the problem is not the flag planting but that there is not enough Security to break up the fight. Moreover, he goes on the blame Ryan Day for not intervening in the fight.
Coach Saban responds: “I’m all for players celebrating, but taunting is a penalty. If you plant a flag, you are actually taunting the tradition of the school and their logo, so, I think you have to draw the line between celebration and taunting”
Needless to say, once again, Howard comes off like the fool. ESPN has put up with his ridiculous takes long enough. Replace him with Jake Butt if you need the Michigan perspective in a rational package.
