Today, we profile 3 men who lead by example, but what sort of example?

Name: Joe Paterno
Position: Head Coach, Football, Penn State University
Example of his Leadership: Recently, “Joe Pa,” was featured along with his football program, the one he’s been in charge of since before the dawn of the digital game clock, on an episode of ESPN’s Outside the Lines. In the expose, it was revealed that 17 PSU football players were charged with crimes since, wait for it, January 1, 2007. Not 1997. Not even 2005. 2007. This includes assault charges against 2 PSU players in connection with a campus fight. 9 of the charges have resulted in convictions. Joe Pa’s response to the expose? Well, apparently he said, “You Got a Good Looking Witch Hunt Here, Don’t You?” He also allegedly pressured school administrators to use a light touch in punishing his players. And you can bet Joe Pa knows a which hunt when he sees one, since he was present for the ones in Salem back in the day. Anyway, in an interesting example of “timing,” Joe Pa has booted one of the players charged in the previously mentioned fight along with another player who was involved in a previous fight. The question about the timing is, does this move come after the expose, or before more bad news?

Name: Kirk Ferentz
Position of Leadership: Head Coach, Football, University of Iowa
Example of his Leadership: Thanks largely to ESPN’s coverage of Penn State, the Hawkeye HC may be breathing a little easier knowing that the college football world’s attention has been distracted from allegations that he and Iowa leadership were, essentially, involved in a cover-up of a sexual assault perpetrated by Iowa football players upon an Iowa student on Iowa’s campus. Oh, yeah, I forgot the extra “allegedly”s in there, didn’t I? Well, here, have an allegedly as I remind you that 18 Iowa football players, past and present, have been arrested since April 2007 for stuff they allegedly did.

Name: Randy Shannon
Position of Leadership: Head Coach, Football, University of Miami
Example of his Leadership: When Coach Shannon was hired before last season, it was pretty clear that the university had hoped that he could bring a new level of honor to a program that was sorely lacking in it. Shannon was a no-nonsense sort of guy who took over the program with a firm hand and did unheard of things like demand his players not carry weapons and sign a “code of conduct.” And despite a 5-7 season last year, things were looking up for Shannon and the Hurricanes as Miami signed 33 recruits in a top-5 class this past winter. 33. A number that is a full 8 units of whatever you’re measuring above the NCAA allowed 25. So how did Shannon make them all fit in the class? Well, he just let the excess fall off. And why not, considering the “excess” happen to be relatively low-rated talents that Miami wont really miss all that much anyway. It was just nice having them as insurance just in case the “VHT”s, as Phil Steel might call them, didn’t manage to show up for the start of practice.

Share This

• Michigan Leadership: Back Off Professors!
• Schembechler Writes Book, Surprisingly Not Ghost Written.
• Young Leadership