Well, this is one way to stir the pot.
Since Lou Holtz left as Notre Dame’s head coach following the 1996 season, the storied Irish football program has compiled a record of 107-78. A winning percentage of .578 has, obviously, not sat well with most fans, alumni and former players of the school.
Thankfully for them, one of those former players has offered up some “helpful” advice in turning around the Irish.
During an appearance on the McNeil and Spiegel Show Wednesday, ex-Irish All-American running back and current Irish radio analyst Allen Pinkett suggested that a few bad apples -- and a couple of criminals -- could be just what the doctor ordered for Notre Dame.
“I’ve always felt like, to have a successful team, you gotta have a few bad citizens on the team. I mean, that’s how Ohio State used to win all the time. They would have two or three guys that were criminals. That just adds to the chemistry of the team. I think Notre Dame is growing because maybe they have some guys that are doing something worthy of a suspension, which creates edge on the football team. You can’t have a football team full of choir boys. You get your butt kicked if you have a team full of choir boys. You gotta have a little bit of edge, but the coach has to be the dictator and ultimate ruler.”
Pinkett, an Irish radio analyst for over a decade, went on to state that, as far as the criminal angle of his thesis, he doesn’t “want any mass murders or rapists” on the Irish, which is likely a solid strategy for any football program. Instead, Pinkett said...
“I want guys that maybe get caught drinking that are underage, or guys that maybe got arrested because they got in a fight at a bar, or guys that are willing to cuss in public and don’t mind the repercussions of it. That’s the type of criminal I’m talking about.”
Given the opportunity to back down, Pinkett reiterated his strategy for returning the Irish to its glory days.
“I absolutely meant that. Chemistry is so important on a football team. You have to have a couple of bad guys that sorta teeter on that edge to add to the flavor of the guys that are going to always do right. … You look at the teams that have won in the past. They always have a couple of criminals.”
It’s unclear how these comments will impact Pinkett’s working relationship with the school.
(Photo credit: Notre Dame athletics)
