Calipari and his coaching brethren see jobs program as step toward ‘true equality’
During the 1967 riots in Detroit, Tom Izzo was a junior high school student in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
“That was 50 years ago,” the Michigan State basketball coach said during Monday’s episode of the “Coffee With Cal” Facebook show, “and we’re still fighting the same thing.”
Izzo meant systemic racism in the United States.
The show’s host, Kentucky Coach John Calipari, made the same point by asking a rhetorical question about the protests that followed the Los Angeles police beating of Rodney King in 1992. “What’s changed since then?” he asked.
Calipari and the coaches who appeared on the 12th and final episode of “Coffee With Cal” spoke optimistically about the potential for change at long last. It could come in the form of a program designed to help minority candidates begin careers in athletics. This brainchild of Calipari’s became reality on Monday with the announcement of the McLendon Minority Leadership Initiative, which intends to create access and opportunities for careers in athletics. The UK coach said more than 50 coaches — including Mike Krzyzewski of Duke — supported the idea. The hope was for hundreds of coaches to come aboard after the first year. UK Director of Athletics Mitch Barnhart was “absolutely ecstatic” about it, Calipari said.
“I’ve even said, wouldn’t it be great to say the president of the United States started through this kind of program . . . ,” Calipari said. “You’ve got to start somewhere, and that’s what we’re trying to do with this.”
Missouri Coach Cuonzo Martin cloaked his hopefulness in a sober assessment of reality. It was the same message he’s given his sons, ages 22 and 18.
“I don’t think I’ll be on this Earth to see true equality,” said Martin, who turns 49 on Sept. 23. “And I’m not saying that to be negative. But if I do my part so, God-willing, if I have grandkids, they can see that.
“And I think what we’re doing right now will change the game. It’ll change our country.”
Applications can be made at Minorityleaders.org. A bachelor’s degree is required, “maybe a Master’s degree,” Calipari said. “We’re trying to develop the next wave of decision-makers. . . . That’s how we become more diverse.”
Calipari and his co-host, ESPN college basketball analyst Jordan Cornette, emphasized that the program is not about internships.
“These are jobs,” Calipari said. “These are not where you’re stuffing envelopes. These are real jobs.”
Added Cornette: “Not bogus internships.”
Several coaches spoke of the timing being right for such a program. The police killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and others sparked a diverse crowd of protesters: Young, old, Black, white, female, male.
“We’ve got to go now,” Izzo said. “I’ve never seen it in my 60 years so strong. This is why we’ve got to strike while the iron is hot.”
Action, not words, is the preferred method of striking, the Michigan State coach said.
“I think we’ve done enough leading by example . . . ,” Izzo said. “That’s not enough. I said that to my players: Leading by example is BS. It’s phony. It means it’s easy. ‘I’ll do my thing, and if somebody’s watching, maybe they’ll pick up on it.’
“I think we’ve got to lead by grabbing guys by the bootstraps and bringing them in with us.”
