SEC commissioner orders coaches to stop public bickering

By David Moorman  |   Sunday, May 31, 2009  |  Comments( 1 )

College Football
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Hush.

That's the byword among Southeastern Conference coaches now that conference commissioner Mike Slive has spoken.

Tired of the public bickering among some of his coaches, Slive went public himself at the SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Fla. Slive ordered his coaches to air any grievances they have through the league office in accordance with a policy adopted in 2004.

Slive finally had enough after South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier made some disparaging remarks about new Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin in a voice loud enough for the media to hear. Slive’s now hoping his voice is the last one on the subject.

Slive’s action shows strong leadership from a boss who needed to nip this growing problem in the bud. There has been no love lost between the brash Kiffin and his fellow coaches, who had become both catty and chatty.

Slive already had publicly reprimanded Kiffin when the coach made false accusations about Florida’s Urban Meyer after signing day. Kiffin and Spurrier haven’t been the only ones involved in the mudslinging. Meyer and new Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen have done their share, too.

Given the egos involved, if Slive hadn’t taken swift action, the competitive coaches undoubtedly would have continued drawing attention to themselves with their childish behavior.

SETTING A LIMIT: Speaking of out of control, the number of signees was becoming absurd. There’s no reason a team should sign 37 players, as Ole Miss did this year, or even 32, as did Arkansas.

NCAA rules limit schools to bringing in a total of 25 signees each fall. Given that there will be some attrition between the signing period and the actual reporting date, it stands to reason that schools should have some leeway in signing more than they need.

But there has to be a limit, and so the SEC presidents set one at 28. The coaches had hoped for 30. Either way would have been better than what had been taking place.

WILD AND CRAZY GUYS: For years, silver-haired Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson has been mistaken for celebrated actor/comedian Steve Martin. Now, even Martin has admitted to as much.
Johnson met Martin backstage at the Grand Ole Opry after the banjo-playing Martin’s first set of his Opry debut. While Johnson said Martin was understandably preoccupied, Johnson said Martin told Johnson, “’Hey, we look alike.’”
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About David Moorman

Dave Moormann is an award-winning journalist, who has covered LSU athletics since 1980. He began his coverage with the Baton Rouge Advocate, where he was a writer and editor from 1980-98. In 1996, he authored a book on the history of LSU football entitled, "Fighting Tigers Handbook: Stories, Stats ...
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