According to the St. Pete Times, USF has hired Lou Holtz, son of former Notre Dame coach and ESPN commentator Lou Holtz, as their new head coach.
The saga ends for Jim Leavitt at USF anyway, but this coming on the heels of the Mangino and Leach stories, put in place a de-facto "no-touch", "no-abuse" policy in place at the NCAA level.
One would think that common sense would say that there shouldn't be a need for a formal policy, that common sense and ethics would prevail, but apparently not. The era of grabbing kids by the face mask and attempting to shake some sense into them are a thing of the past.
The chatter is that the kid covered up the extent of the abuse in the locker room at halftime of a game. The university alleges that Leavitt also covered up or impeded their investigation of the matter. That will all play out as all parties have "lawyered up"
More fallout will come as universities try to to draw definitive line of authority in areas like concussions and injuries. In no way should coaches be involved in treating injuries, especially those that involve the long-term health of players. That should be the exclusive domain of athletic trainers and medical personnel. Wins and losses or getting a key player back in time for a key game should not be a pressure that is applied to these staff members.
Holz' hire allows the university to move on and may in fact improve their prospects on the football field. He has done a great job at East Carolina and certainly has impeccable pedigree.
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