While walking out of Maples Pavilion in January 1997 after the
most lopsided loss in UCLA basketball history, I overheard a
disgruntled Bruin fan sound off on then-interim head coach Steve
Lavin.
The man pondered Lavin’s role in the 109-61 thrashing at
the hands of the Stanford Cardinal and then quipped, “Well,
he’s no Jim Harrick, that’s for sure.”
Looking back on that statement five years later, the man could
have paid Lavin no bigger compliment.
Bruin fans have criticized Lavin throughout his tenure at the
school, claiming that he has not been a consistent winner.
On the other hand, Harrick has a successful track record
everywhere he has coached ““ a national championship at UCLA
in 1995, an Elite Eight appearance at Rhode Island in ’98,
and last season’s SEC Championship at Georgia obviously speak
for themselves.
Nonetheless, careful analysis of the former UCLA head
coach’s career demonstrates that he obviously places winning
above the integrity of his program. In fact, Harrick’s
recruiting standards have plummeted so far that he might not
hesitate to ink the Menendez brothers to scholarships if he could
get them past admissions.
Since the University of Georgia named Harrick head coach in
1999, nine of his recruits have been deemed academically ineligible
prior to their freshman seasons. Nine.
Heading into the 2003 season, all four incoming freshmen,
centers Julian Lamptey and Larry Turner, forward Alexander Johnson,
and guard Wayne Arnold, have encountered academic setbacks, and it
is possible that none of them will ever set foot on the court in a
Bulldogs’ uniform.
Neither Lamptey nor Johnson earned test scores that were up to
NCAA standards, and the Prep-All American Turner was denied
entrance to the university when questions about the validity of his
ACT results made the admissions department squeamish.
The 6-foot-5 Arnold did not have enough credits to earn his high
school diploma after missing several weeks of class when his mother
died of cancer in December 2001. While Arnold is taking summer
school classes to qualify prior to the end of the summer, if he is
unable to achieve a passing grade, then not a single member of the
recruiting class will wear a Georgia uniform next season.
If the fortune of this season’s recruiting class could be
viewed in a vacuum, then perhaps Harrick’s woes would go
unnoticed; however, the coach has a history of ignoring character
issues in potential prospects.
Two current Georgia players and former Harrick recruits, Tony
Cole and Steve Thomas, are scheduled to stand trial later this
month on felony rape and assault charges stemming from an alleged
January incident that took place in Cole’s dorm room.
Furthermore, two years ago Harrick tried to bring in Kenny
Brunner, who had bounced around the college hoops landscape, but is
most famous for his involvement in the infamous “Samurai
Sword” incident at Fresno State.
In 1998, Brunner was arrested and charged with assault after
putting a sword to another student; two years later, he served some
jail time for alleged armed robbery of Los Angeles City College
coach Mike Miller.
Although Brunner never actually played in a game for the
Bulldogs, Harrick’s interest in him has left another
indelible mark on the integrity of the Georgia program.
Nonetheless, the coach’s “win at all costs”
mentality stretches beyond his three-year tenure in Athens.
Just a season removed from winning a national championship at
UCLA, he was fired in 1996 for falsifying an expense report
specifying the details of a dinner with three prized recruits. A
year later at Rhode Island he signed Lamar Odom, who had been
denied admission to UNLV for academic reasons and was once cited
for soliciting a prostitute.
Although Lavin has also taken recruiting risks, most notably
offering scholarships to incoming freshmen Michael Fey and Evan
Burns in spite of academic questions, he has not shown the same
recklessness when building a roster.
There is no denying Harrick has achieved tremendous success as a
coach, but if the price of winning is an unscrupulous program, then
his achievements leave a bitter taste in my mouth.
Steve Lavin is no Jim Harrick, and I for one am fine with
that.