You can see what happens when head coaches get out of their lane.

Recently, Mack Brown was asked some pointed questions about the process that would eventually allow his players to engage in the furthest thing imaginable from social distancing, such as colliding with each other and opponents on hot summer and autumn afternoons.

Brown repeatedly answered, “I’m staying in my lane. That will be up to the health experts.”

Considering the trouble coaches at Clemson, Oklahoma State and Iowa have found themselves in this past week, Brown had the right answer. The veteran UNC coach knows how to be politically and socially correct, staying right in his lane and out of trouble.

Dabo Swinney and Mike Gundy of Oklahoma State have been caught in photos wearing t-shirts that were offensive to half of America. Kirk Ferentz at Iowa finally had to address racial insensitivity that has plagued his program for years.

When the three coaches got in front of microphones for respective mea culpas, they were way out of their lanes and comfort zones; looking far different from power college coaches who are almost untouchable and usually in total control.

After the Clemson team marched in protest to Swinney wearing a t-shirt that said “Football Matters” during the Black Lives Matter uprising, the usually off-the-cuff and candid Dabo read nervously from a prepared statement that pledged more awareness and changes.

Gundy has been on the hot seat for years since, despite an overall winning record, is 2-13 against Oklahoma in the most important game of the season. He wore a t-shirt with the logo of a far-right news network that is offensive to his black players. He also delivered a robotic statement of apology and promised to change.

Ferentz fired the Iowa strength coach who has been the target of player complaints about alleged mistreatment, and he admitted not paying enough attention to the grievances.

Three power coaches with winning records, who finally learned that the W’s aren’t enough.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Related Stories
‹
Chansky's Notebook: Bailing Out
Roy Williams probably had reasons for the soft statements. Carolina fans reacted strongly to the video of a team party after the win over Duke. Only Armando Bacot and Day’Ron Sharpe were in the video, but a statement from players and managers said it was supposed to be a closed event that other students and […]
Chansky's Notebook: Please, Go In!
UNC men's basketball faces what is an early season must-win at Georgia Tech. Art Chansky says a look at the statistics is painful, but not terminal.
Chansky's Notebook: Leaky Steps Up
Dean Smith used to say he’ll be happy with a one-point win. The legendary UNC basketball coach struggled spiritually between playing well according to his teachings, regardless of outcome, and winning no matter how poorly you play. Since his job was to win and he was so competitive, he chose the latter. If he was […]
Chansky's Notebook: Rock(et) Star
Ben Kiernan was UNC’s MVP of the Notre Dame game. When Mack Brown went over the 31-17 loss, he gave mixed reviews to the two main branches of his Tar Heels’ play. He said the offense was good in the first half and then “went dead” in a scoreless second half. He praised the Tar […]
Chansky's Notebook: Goals and Ambitions
Garrison Brooks has both opportunity and pressure. On paper, the ACC looks as weak as it has been in some time due to widespread losses to graduation and early departures to the NBA, and no sure-shot superstars in the incoming recruiting classes. A beneficiary of this development is Brooks, the Carolina senior who was second-team All-ACC last year and earned the league’s […]
Chansky's Notebook: A COVID Debate
Clemson was livid that Florida State wouldn’t play the game. Let’s be lawyers, and make a case for each of the teams that did not play its scheduled game over the weekend. Clemson had traveled to Florida State when it learned a player with mild symptoms who had practiced with the team all week tested […]
Chansky's Notebook: Draft Dodgers
Carolina and Duke players have lost ground in the NBA draft. Like everything else with sports in the COVID era, the NBA draft goes off tonight after being postponed for five months. And if you look at the various mock draft boards, certain things jump off your screen. First of all, about half the names […]
Chansky's Notebook: A Two-Thirds Bet?
What if Phil Mickelson and Mack Brown amended their bet? With the Masters being moved back to this weekend due to COVID, perhaps the three-time champion should revisit the fun bet he made with Carolina’s football coach back in 2003. The famed lefthander was still seeking his first Green Jacket when he partnered with the Texas football coach at the […]
Chansky's Notebook: Kudos To Carolina
UNC teams did a commendable job beating the odds. Who among us thought the ACC would be playing football and other fall sports last summer? With the pandemic upon us and the medical experts still learning, the seasons looked like a long shot. While other conferences pumped the breaks and/or called off football, the ACC […]
Chansky's Notebook: Extra Motivation
Carolina’s schedule could be working to its advantage. When the COVID-revised list of games came out, it looked troublesome for the Tar Heels with Virginia Tech and Florida State basically bookending Notre Dame and Miami with four rivalry games in a row right in the middle. Coaches usually don’t like that because it takes a […]
›