Knight talks -- ESPN, Tonight (Tuesday) 8:00pm http://www.msnbc.com/news/457942.asp?0nm=-15R Knight will tell his side of story Tuesday Ex-Indiana coach will grant hour-long interview to ESPN ASSOCIATED PRESS INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 11 — Bob Knight is no longer head coach at Indiana, but he’s not going away quietly. Knight spoke briefly with students late Sunday night and promised to “tell you my side of this thing.” He will speak publicly about his situation Tuesday. THE RED-SWEATERED stalwart of the Hoosiers’ bench, the man they once called “The General,” was fired Sunday by Indiana University for a “pattern of unacceptable behavior.” Knight will speak for the first time about his situation in an hour-long interview with ESPN at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The university faces the task of replacing one of college basketball’s great coaches while keeping together a team many considered the most talented Hoosiers squad in years. That squad gave IU athletic director Clarence Doninger an ultimatum Monday afternoon, saying that if he doesn’t elevate Davis or assistant coach John Treloar to interim head coach, the entire team will quit. Knight had a meeting with his team Sunday night and afterward addressed a throng of students outside Assembly Hall, site of his encounter with freshman Kent Harvey last week. “In the next couple days, I’m going to get together somewhere with as many students who want to come out, and then I’m going to tell you my side of this thing,” the 59-year-old Knight told the crowd. “And I think you’ll be interested in hearing it.” Assistant coach Mike Davis said Knight apologized at the team meeting for having to leave his players. Knight’s players made their views felt Monday morning. At the urging of Knight, junior guard Dane Fife decided to leave the Hoosiers. He said he does not think there is any reason to stay, now that his coach has been fired. He said he did not know where he will transfer, and also added that he might be talked out of it “if the assistants are retained.” Davis, Knight’s top recruiter the past two seasons and the key link to the team for many players, also said his future in Bloomington rests with Knight. “Whatever coach tells me to do, whatever the players say, I’m going to do,” Davis said Monday, walking out of Assembly Hall. Other players — many came to Indiana solely because of Knight — were also turning to their former coach for guidance. Junior forward Jarrad Odle said Knight made it clear to the team he’s available anytime they want to talk. “He’s going to be a friend to us now instead of a coach,” Odle said, standing outside the building where banners mark Knight’s three national championships. “He’s being a friend to us and trying to get us to the best place we can be.” What remains to be seen is whether the best place will be Indiana. “They’ve just got to simmer down and see what happens,” Davis said of the players. “It all depends on what coach says.” “You’ve got some quality people and they are stunned by all of this,” Doninger said earlier in the day. “They are hurt by all of this. There’s no question they came to Indiana University to play for coach Bob Knight.” Doninger made it clear that he wants Davis and Treloar to stay. When it comes to appointing an interim head coach, Doninger said the university was examining its options. As for Knight, Davis and Odle said they’re sure the coach won’t have trouble finding work. “He told us he’s going to coach again,” Odle said. “There’s no doubt in my mind, he’s one of the best coaches in the nation and for him to not move on to another school would be a shame.” Knight’s son, assistant coach Pat Knight, said Monday the experience has ruined Indiana University for him. “The university handled this poorly,” he said. “I’m ashamed to say I went here. I’ll never do anything again for this university.” Would he stay on as an assistant? “No,” Knight said. “I’m going with my Dad. I stand by him.” As does a large portion of the student body. Across the campus Monday were remnants of the previous night’s rallying, where thousands of students displayed pro-Knight banners and burned university president Myles Brand in effigy. Hanging by a rope outside one off-campus house was a stuffed human figure with the name Kent Harvey written on its shirt. Harvey is the 19-year-old freshman who had a run-in with Knight that sparked the events leading to the coach’s dismissal. A sign by the hanging figure said, “This is what we do to traitors.” Harvey said Knight grabbed him by the arm and cursed at him after the freshman greeted the coach at Assembly Hall by saying, “Hey, what’s up, Knight?” Knight said he had simply held the student’s arm and lectured him about manners. Trustees became aware of Knight’s other recent misdeeds during a meeting Saturday, the day after his run-in with Harvey became public, trustee Cora Smith Breckenridge said Monday. Brand detailed the misconduct at the news conference Sunday in which he announced Knight’s firing. That included the tirade directed at the female university lawyer in his office. Brand referred to her as a “high ranking university official,” whom The Indianapolis Star identified Monday as school counsel Dorothy Frapwell. Frapwell was in Knight’s office discussing school business when he switched the conversation to a $30,000 fine he received in May, trustee Ray Richardson told the newspaper. “The coach did use profanity in the conversation and the university official felt intimidated, and described his eventual demeanor as enraged,” Simpson said. “She said, ‘This is the end of the conversation,’ and he said, ‘I think you should leave,’ and that was the end of it.” She did not file a complaint, Simpson said. Regardless, Brand and other university officials saw the confrontation — and other misconduct that had not been publicized — as the final blow. After reprimanding Knight in May and putting him under a zero-tolerance policy, the university acted quickly, unwilling to let this latest episode linger. ------------------ Stay Cool...
Do you think it's right for Knight to urge his players, assistant coaches, and scouts to quit? Is this anything other than petty revenge? If he says anything interesting, I'd appreciate it if someone could pass it on. My apartment just switched cable companies, and the new service isn't hooked up yet. Thanks ------------------ Stay Cool...
How many of you were surprised when Bob Knight told Jeremey Schapp. Knight said something to like, you have a longs way to go before you reach the level of your dad. Just another example of how Knight was losing his cool. I liked the way Jeremey Schapp handled himself and asked the questions. Unlike the interview in May of this year with Bob Knight on ESPN. In that interview Roy Firestone seemed like Bob Knights b****. ------------------ Titan's fanatic!!!! It was the first time the Titans sent an offense to the line of scrimmage with Eddie George in the backfield behind McNair to go with Wycheck at tight end and Carl Pickens, Kevin Dyson and Yancey Thigpen at wide receiver. So many choices, with a full season still ahead. "I think that might be scary for a defense," Dyson said.
Has Jason Collier said anything about this whole incident yet? I think it's quite sad that Harvey has received death threats on campus.
I think that IU should look into legal actions against Knight if he's telling the kids to leave. Have y'all caught his son? He's on the same track as his Dad, everyone's out to get them, Daddy's never done anything wrong, wants to get revenge on all the people that told these "lies". Whatever dude, just be happy your maniac dad only broke your nose and collar bone on that hunting trip that time. ------------------ Cheerleaders are just dancers who've gone r****ded. visit www.swirve.com
