After riding a Crimson Tidal wave of support all the way from
Pullman to Tuscaloosa, Mike Price has been left high and dry.
The former Washington State coach washed out of Alabama when the
same university officials who endorsed his hiring in January called
for his firing on Saturday after Price got a little too
affectionate with a topless dancer named “Destiny” last
month in a hotel room.
Never before has a date with “Destiny” ended like
this.
The 57-year-old Price certainly exhibited poor judgment bringing
a stripper into his hotel room and allowing her to rack up a $1000
bill ordering one of everything on the room service menu.
This certainly is not the kind of conduct becoming of a married
man, but one mistake in his personal life should not erase a
lifetime of excellence on the gridiron.
But in the mind of Alabama President Robert Witt, it has.
Witt led an investigation that amounted to little more than a
witch hunt, as Price never had the chance to offer his side of the
story until after his fate had been decided.
With the Larry Eustachy incident dominating the news, the deck
might have been stacked against Price. The legacy of former Alabama
coaches thinking below their waists could not have helped
either.
Former Crimson Tide basketball coach Wimp Sanderson had a highly
publicized affair with his secretary, while the school’s
former football coach, Mike Dubose, was charged in a sexual
harassment suit in which he ultimately paid his secretary a
$360,000 settlement.
In light of these incidents, Witt might have thought he had
nothing to lose in firing Price.
Nothing to lose ““ except one of the best coaches in the
nation.
Despite having never donned the headsets on the sidelines in
Tuscaloosa, Price had the unquestioned support of the entire
Alabama squad. Although it had only been under his tutelage for
four months, a teary-eyed group of players spoke at a press
conference early Saturday morning urging the administration to
reconsider.
They didn’t.
While a little hanky-panky couldn’t displace President
Clinton, it apparently was enough to leave the Crimson Tide
Price-less.
Then again maybe Price should be held to a higher standard than
the president. There are those in the Heart of Dixie that believe
the Alabama football coach has the more important position.
After the university held a press conference announcing that
Price was gone, the former coach addressed the media and his
crestfallen team separately. He made a point of demonstrating that
he felt as if the rug had been pulled out from under him.
“I don’t think the punishment fits the crime,”
Price said. “I strongly feel that I was the man that could
have put this behind us. I think President Witt is making a
mistake.”
Perhaps the biggest reason Alabama should not have fired Price
is the complete lack of quality candidates on the market right now.
It will be next to impossible for the Crimson Tide to find even a
serviceable replacement, let alone a full staff.
So while Witt struggles in vain to find a new coach for the
Crimson Tide, Price will take it easy for a year as he waits for
another opening to come up.
Given the state of the Alabama program, his next job should be a
lot better than the one he left.
My copy editor wants to be a part of the circus underworld and
hang out with the trapeze artists. E-mail Eisenberg with your
thoughts at jeisenberg@media.ucla.edu.