And let’s now forget Jayhawk football. Remember 2009? Coach Mark Mangino was accused of verbally and physically abusing his players. One player had confided to the coach that his father was an alcoholic. So, in front of the entire team, Mangino said, “So, are you going to be a lawyer of an alcoholic like your dad?” Mangino responded to the allegations by going on talk radio and attacking his players’ parents!
But Mangino was a mess before that. In 2004, he paid a $5,000 fine for suggesting that the officials and the Big 12 conspired to cost him a game against Texas. Then, 3 years later, one of his assistant coaches was found to have supplied answers to correspondence courses taken by potential athletes.
Kansas fired Mangino in 2009. LostOlge.com said, “Firing Mangino for behaving like a jackass is too easy. It’s like firing Rick Pitino for having sex.”
But it starts at the top with A.D. Kew Perkins. Five of his employees ran a scam involving millions of dollars worth of basketball and football tickets. Also, Perkins is accused of accepting workout equipment for his home in exchange for letting the company’s owner buy premium tickets in Allen Fieldhouse.
My prediction: The stain has spread over the entire athletic department. Already, top recruits are refusing to listen to anyone associated with Kansas basketball or football. In 10 years,, we'll see this headline, “Jayhawks fall to Weber St. in the Big Sky semis."