N&O's "Public Editor": Hatchet Work 'Justified'

In his normal Sunday column, News & Observer Public Editor Ted Vaden gave his take on the infamous "College Inn" story that recently appeared in the paper. It was written by Lorenzo Perez, with assistance from everyone's favorite reporter, Chip Alexander.

The story itself has been talked about and criticized by The Red and White from State. I don't feel that I need to give a summary of the article here, as anyone reading this probably knows about the article already.

Mr. Vaden, however, just gave his two cents on the subject in yesterday's paper, and I find his comments quite interesting. While critical of some aspects of the story, he ultimately decides that the story was justified. He actually says "stories", as he links two separate articles. One was an investigative waste of ink, spread across five columns of the Sports section front page. The other was questioning whether or not the Wolfpack Club should be allowed to benefit from a change in tax law that made the College Inn tax-exempt.

I have no problems with the tax question. The law is the law, and the College Inn either qualifies as tax-exempt or it doesn't.

The larger article, however, reads as a witch hunt, and I think Mr. Vaden takes the easy way out by citing both articles in his justification. The two articles are separate, and should be looked at that way.

There is lots of speculation and innuendo in the article, but no actual numbers that put NCSU anywhere near an NCAA violation. However, the oversight of the facility is questioned repeatedly, and the author seems to want to uncover some sort of wrongdoing on the part of NCSU or the Wolfpack Club.

In closing, Mr. Vaden ran this quote from Assistant Sports Editor Andrew Curliss:

"I view it as part of my responsibility to tell readers what these booster groups are up to."

I'm sure everyone is waiting for the in-depth looks at the Iron Dukes and the Rams Club that must be forthcoming.

I think the article could have been a positive, if the reporter had chosen to point out that owning a money-making business helps the Wolfpack Club have income that is not subject to the whims or its fanbase or the fluctuations of the economy. If the facility is well-maintained and well-managed, it will be a source of income that the Wolfpack Club can rely on, which can help eliminate the need for increased student fees to help with athletic costs.

Screams Heard In Cleveland

Tracy Boulian/The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer

Those screams were from this man, Brady Quinn, backup quarterback for the Cleveland Browns.

Why was Quinn screaming?

Because on Saturday, in New York City, when Vernon Gholston was selected 6th overall by the New York Jets, the "green room" was empty. The NFL invited six prospects to the draft, and they were the first six players taken.

Last season, Quinn was projected to be a high pick, and was invited to New York for the draft by the NFL. He was expected to be, at worst, the third pick, which was held by the Cleveland Browns. The Browns selected offensive tackle Joe Thomas, and Quinn's monumental slide began.

He fell all the way to 22nd, where the Browns selected him after moving up in a trade. Quinn had to sit, alone, in the green room for hours and listen to other players' names being called. The entire time, ESPN showed his reactions to each pick.

The 6-for-6 showing this past weekend is just one last little bit of salt in that wound for Brady Quinn.

Quick Post-Draft Panthers Thoughts

Marty Hurney and John Fox have basically bet their futures on Jonathan Stewart and Jeff Otah.
The Oregon running back and Pittsburgh offensive tackle were both drafted in the first round by the Panthers, who mortgaged next year's draft to move up and get Otah.

The Panthers draft, on paper, looks impressive. Stewart, if healthy, may be the opening day starter at RB. Otah could (should?) be the opening day right tackle. Iowa defensive back Charles Godfrey, who played corner in college, is expected to play safety for the Panthers. He is also expected to be able to challenge for a starting spot.

The Panthers' coaching staff and front office personnel are under a lot of pressure going into next season. If the team does not make the playoffs, changes are probably going to take place. Otah's development will be crucial, simply because of what was sacrificed to get him. The Panthers gave the Philadelphia Eagles their 2nd- and 4th-round picks this year, plus 2009's first round pick, to get the 19th pick in this year's draft and nab Otah. If next year's pick is better than 19th, and Otah wasn't a starter, then Fox and Hurney may very well end up unemployed.

No Tyler, But Other Heels "Testing Waters"

Tyler Hansbrough is coming back to UNC for his senior year. That decision was announced a few days ago, and at the same time it was announced that Wayne Ellington and Ty Lawson will "test the waters." For those who don't know, that means that they will enter the NBA draft pool, but not hire an agent, thereby maintaining their college eligibility should they decide in the next month or so that they are not happy with their likely draft position.

Neither decision was particularly surprising, in my opinion. Hansbrough was always more likely to come back, and Ellington and Lawson always seemed more curious about "the process." I believe that Lawson is more likely to stay in the draft than Ellington, but I think there is a good chance that both end up back in Chapel Hill. Ellington is unlikely to be a first round draft pick, and Lawson is projected near the bottom of the first round. If Lawson has some impressive workouts, he may be able to move up into the 'teens, and he may decide that position is high enough for him to jump to the league. I don't believe Ellington can work his way into the first round.

And then there is Danny Green. It was announced over the weekend that he, too, would "test the waters." Even though his name wasn't mentioned by Roy Williams during the information-gathering process, there were rumors that he was going to enter his name into the draft. Those rumors have turned out to be truthful. This is a "no-risk" decision for Green, simply because as a junior, he won't have another year to "test the waters". Players are allowed to enter the draft and return to school only once, per NCAA rules. Next season would be Green's last at UNC anyway, so entering the draft without an agent is really a "no harm, no foul" exercise. It is unusual in that Coach Williams seems to have looked into Green's draft prospects, given Green a report, and advised him to stay in school. Green apparently decided that Coach Williams information was inaccurate. Rarely do players go against their coach's recommendation, especially at a high profile program such as UNC.

The most shocking part of this whole scenario to me is that Ellington is projected to be drafted ahead of Green. If I were an NBA GM, I would rather have Green than Ellington. Ellington has a very smooth jumper, but it was inconsistent this past season...as was the rest of his game. Green has a very good jumper, plays decent defense, rebounds, and even blocks a lot of shots for someone who's "only" 6'6".

Time will tell, I suppose. Best of luck to all the Tar Heels. I honestly hope that they all make the right decision, whether that means staying in Chapel Hill or going to the NBA. For much more in-depth analysis of Green's decision (and all other things UNC), check out Tar Heel Fan.

Final Game/Offseason UNC Post

***Disclaimer***
I understand that anything in this post that may be construed as negative is only written out of jealousy. Furthermore, I understand that I am totally unqualified to ask any questions about anything UNC basketbal related, because Roy Williams is in the Basketball Hall of Fame and I'm not...yet.


The University of North Carolina saw their basketball season come to an end on Saturday night in San Antonio, Texas. The Tar Heels were beaten by the Kansas Jayhawks 84-66 in one of the national semifinals.

UNC was 36-3, and they swept the ACC, winning the regular season and tournament championships. Losing in the Final Four is nothing to be ashamed of, either. Kansas is a very good team.

However, I am perplexed at some UNC fans' inability to turn a critical eye at their team following the loss. Almost every comment I have read from UNC fans trumpets their team's accomplishments, and I don't think I've seen one wondering how things went so wrong.

Kansas buried UNC with a first half avalanche. At one point, the score was 40-12. Roy Williams didn't do anything to try to stem the tide. In the biggest game of the season, he stuck with his "let 'em play" mentality, and the players dug a hole that proved too deep to escape. Last year, when State fans wondered why Roy didn't call any timeouts during NC State's victory over UNC, Carolina fans said Roy let the players struggle as a "learning tool." The Alamodome is a huge classroom, I guess.

In the second half, UNC made several surges, and eventually cut the lead to 4. Had a few bounces gone differently, UNC could have still had a shot at winning. One of the surges was countered by a Kansas surge, and Kansas burst began at a time when there was no one on the floor named Lawson, Hansbrough or Ellington. Other than blowouts and games Lawson missed due to injury, I'd be interested to know how often that happened this season. Especially in games where UNC was behind and struggling to catch up.

The loss actually becomes a part of a different story, one that I may do more research on later (but I doubt it). For the second straight year, UNC lost a game that they probably should have won. This Kansas no-show follows last year's collapse versus Georgetown. Other than 2005's championship run, Roy Williams has a history of under-achieving in the NCAA Tournament. Several of his Kansas teams failed to achieve expected tournament success, and this is the second straight disappointing exit at UNC.

Now, the UNC focus turns to how great next year will be. And it very well could be amazing. Most likely, at least two of the three UNC players who were expected to consider the NBA will now come back. There's a very good chance that Ty Lawson, Tyler Hansbrough, and Wayne Ellington will all return. Add in a star-studded recruiting class, and things look great for the Heels going forward.

The only question: chemistry.

Tyler Zeller and Ed Davis are both 5-star power forwards. How do they work with returners Hansbrough, Deon Thompson and Alex Stepheson? Larry Drew is a 4-star point guard. He probably expected to battle Bobby Frasor for playing time. How will he like being potentially 3rd string?

Chemistry is a fickle beast. There are no guarantees. The UNC freshman class that included Jerry Stackhouse and Rasheed Wallace had chemistry issues with the upper classmen. Chemistry problems do not prevent teams from being successful. UNC will be super-talented next season, and will be the odds-on favorite to win the ACC again. Chemistry can make a difference in a tournament game, though. If every single player is not on the same page, even the greatest team can fall.

Next season, Roy's task will be to juggle playing time and personalities.

Down To Two

The Final Four have been reduced to two.

On Saturday night in San Antonio, Memphis defeated UCLA by a score of 78-63, and Kansas beat North Carolina 84-66. Neither game lived up to the hype created during the week leading up to the game.

This year's Final Four was the first to have all four #1 seeds. It was supposed to be highly competitive, and riveting to watch. Only two of the teams were worth watching, and unfortunately they played in separate games.

If the same Memphis and Kansas teams that played Saturday night show up on Monday, the National Championship game could be a great one. If either team is sluggish, they could get blown right out of the Alamodome.

I believe that Memphis should win the game. I really think the UNC game was Kansas' big game, because of the Roy Williams angle. I am not sure they can bring the same effort and intensity to the next game, even if it is for all the marbles.

Hurricanes' Season Over

The Carolina Hurricanes saw their season end officially on Saturday night, as the Washington Capitals defeated the Florida Panthers to clinch the Southeast Division. The Hurricanes' only hope was for the Caps to lose.

The upcoming offseason should be very interesting, because several older veterans could be pushed out by young players. Several veterans missed significant time down the stretch, and the team played very well with them out. Jim Rutherford and Peter Laviolette will have to decide if the young players are ready for the NHL, or if they just caught lightning in a bottle.

Laviolette will likely have some questions to answer as well, simply because of the team's less-than-stellar finish. They had several "win and you're in" games, and didn't win them. I have already seen several people question the wisdom of inserting players coming back from injuries into the lineup, while taking away players who had contributed greatly to Carolina's playoff push. Loyalty to players is a good thing, in moderation...but with a handful of games left in the season, you don't have time for guys to "get their legs back."

Everyone has plenty of time to think about things, unfortunately.