Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Jan. 2, 1986, edition 1 / Page 18
Part of Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
\ * ? Page B4-The Chronicle, Thursc The Sports Colur Contacts ci By BARRY COOPER Syndicated Columnist The National Football League would like to believe that it welcomes all qualified men into its ranks regardless of race, creed or national origin. That may be true on the playing fielu, where blacks dominate. But it certainly is not the case 8 along the sidelines. That area still is dominated by whites who have riseir Unuugh tftg coaching rankss on both skill and good-old-bdy contacts ? the, latter not readily available to most black men. There are iio. black head coaches in the NFL and few black assistants. To its credit, the league is both aware and concerned about the problem. The question is, does the league envision compelling reasons for its franchises to hire black coaches? How much does the NFL really care? Is there any concentrated push for a team to hire a black head coach? Are any of the black assistants in the league being groomed for such a role? The answer to all of these au?. tions is an emphatic no. The NFL appears willing to allow black coaches to fend for themselves and refuses any affirmative action push that would give black coaches the momentum they need to compete for the top jobs. . The hard'-liive reluctance of the NFL to embrace black coaches is one oFlhe reasons that football remains one of the most frustrating fields for blacks. No matter how good or talented, these men are being denied the equal opportunity to rise to the top of their field. Of course, the problem is that * nobody in positions of power cares. The white owners only hire -* a( _ i " * meir irienas or irienas 01 triends. That vicious circle continues to perpetuate itself. The owners have an understandable fear: Will the presence of a black coach lead to a revolt by ticket buyers? Would fans of, ~ say, the Atlanta Falcons still come to the games if a black man were the head coach? Although Atlanta proper has a sizable black population, blacks remain too poor to attend Falcon games in meaningful numbers. The presence of a black coach would ; likely affect attendance of whites from suburban Atlanta, who comprise -the Falcons' largest, most dependable group of fans. : in a simuar situation, tampa Bay fan reaction to former Grambling star Doug Williams, a rare black quarterback in the NFL, was less than hospitable. I We may never know with comfort the answer to those questions. Yet, in basketball the color of the head coach appears to have yr had no bearing on ticket sales The Boston Celtics have con:? tinued to draw well with K.C. Virginia Union 1 i i iBui Tm hi i Norfolk State ( Elizabeth City < Hampton | ( . st. paurs ( ???? ?i i i" ii in Bowie State < Virginia State ? ( fouiiiviii invvsion iKi St. Augustine's ( Livingstone . ( Fayetteville State ( 1?fc?? I I I MB HI North Carolina Central ( Winston-Salem State ( Cj.C. Smith ( i hUhaw ~ ; ^ 1 ' ;r- ; Inter-Divisional games do not ; and Southern Division standin ^ lay, January 2, 1986 nn itical to gettii OKI J ' i ? Football Coach Otis Washingtf 30-25, is rumored to be in a p Athletic Director Dick Hill (file pi Jones at the helm. The-^ Washington Bullets and Seattle SuperSonics remained successful at the gate with black coaches. There was no customer backlash from mafor league baseball's San Francisco Giants when Frank Kooinson was tneir tirst^t)laclt manager. Chances are, the mostly*white audiences who fill the NFL stadiums would pay to see a team coached by a black man if the team was a good one. Admittedly, even white coaches are not an attraction if their teams are lousy. The lowly Falcons have watched their attendance drop to as low as 14,000 in a single game during the 1985 season under Dan Henning. A few years ago, it seemed that the NFL was ready to reach out to black coaches. In 1981, amid charges from civil rights groups that MFI iicpH r\icpriminitrtrii > ? XIV k i a UJVU UIJVI IllllliaiVI y hiring practices, the league opened its training camps to the coaches of historically black schools. f It seemed to be a perfect situation. Each summer, the entire coaching staff of every black college would be flown into an NFL camp for a week. The idea, said a league, spokesman, was "to give them an opportunity to see the NFL way of doing things. To see . how we operate our practices and the way we operate an NFL team. ? "The coaches participate, as would a member of the team. They attend meetings, sleep with the team, attend practice sessions." It is an admirable program. But clearly it is just a handout from the NFL. Any contact is | 1 . .1 _ * 1 VTT'l _ gooa, dui in mis case, me i>fl, is more interested in helping black ?coaches improve their organizational skills than it is in helping them break into the NFL. Since the program started, ' ' coaches from some 48 black colleges have participated. The NFL . * figures that more than 1,000 ' visits have been made by black HIHHIH Morgan Stale toll* Bethune-Cooknn 1-0 6-2 >5 5-0 ?** ~~ M) 6-2 Clark 87, Livingsl rg " a j Livingstone 84, Ni Virginia Union 91 M) 1 ~ hi ?L- MiAC 'M Howard 73, Radf 4* Bethune-Cookma liir' " * Howard 70, Augi u! U Radford 75. Beth ??? Chicago State 89, ?2 ?3?r Utica 73, UMES < ?2 3 5 Akron 79, Morga *-? 35 UMES 75, Coppi M) 2-4 ???K?a?o |ii L count in Northern _ OUATMaWMk _____ No sums schedu 0 M 5ZZZZZMZ ^hw^cooiOTi o/ ' " \ ng NFL job f ,: ' pV^i "-;%" *#V Hp - i^m^m? ****** -*>? VsW... ^JMUIMillHHLI ?. * ? * trj, with a five-year record of >ower struggle with Southern loto).. coaches - all at the league's expense. Give the NFL a healthy pat on the back. However, none of those coaches has been hired by. an NFL team. The league contends that the program's purpose is not for the league to identify coaching prospects. One NFL source, who asked that his name not be used, had this to say about the program: 4 They (black coaches) have an opportunity to rtiaybe move up to the college ranks rather than straight into the NFL. By having the experience of meeting the NFL DeoDle. thev heln , . - - / - r themselves. A lot of times the NFL teams may give recommendations to college coaches who are looking to hire some assistants." 0 So the door that Would allow black coaches into the NFL remains firmly locked. You have to wonder if there is even a key. College Confidential There are continued rumblings of discontent at Southern, where sources say football Coach Otis Washington is engaged Mn a power struggle with Athletic Director Dick Hill. At the root of the argument is whether Washington has the right to fire any of his assistant coaches. Hill told a television station that only the athletic director COlllH makp cnrh mm/Of U..? ? * wwyu ilivr T V>3, UUl a check of Washington's contract, 4 which has two years to run at J about $$0,000 per year, showed J the coach indeed has the right. | Washington has a five-year j record of 30-25 at the Baton * Rouge, La., school .... t The Southern University- i Grambling State football game + drew a crowd of 56,000 in the J New Orleans Superdome Nov. ^ J 23, but it was a far cry from the * + more than 70,000 who used to | say the schools' decision a few ^ Please see page B5 CM) 0-11 in 0-2 ^ 1-9 a 1 1 1 1 ' 1 ; . . ?? .. . .?... . i . , : V.' - - ' '* V .. t o ' . tone 77 lissouri-Rolla 68 American Intentional 74 -&./- - ' - ' : ' ' ' ' V ' '"? " . I '.V " V.' ' ord 64 n 81, Augusta 80 OT ista 62 nne-Cookman 55 Coppin State 73 60 n State 56 n State 72 OT ; ' . led - - ? . . .... _ . ? .y . I ?y? 7 Don't let the s fool y -KIN COB! H premium iAial, > I^l ^^BPBnilH fff !?? fafa^few m 1* ' u / ' R.H. BARRINGER DISTRI Greensboro Winston-Sa S $tua^s New'Ye Clearance ! Wholesale Prices to the Put All prices at clean wholesale ; No hard-sell negotiating. Just clei | -* , Black book available fo I *199 down on [ t Plus Tax & Tags t -1980 Olds Firenza $147.81/month 2-door, Auto, PS, PB, AC, AM/FM Stereo [ Tape, Rallye Wheels S t Sale Price $2,925, 24%, 24 months, Finance 0 [ Charge S751.44, Total Payments S3,547.44 1980 Toyota Corolla 1 $154.70/montti 2-door, 5-speed, AC, Rear Defroster Sale Price $3,125, 24%, 24 months, Finance S Charge $786.80, Total Payments $3,712.80 C ' $147!$}/month*3 4-door, Auto, PS, PB, AC, Stereo Cassette Sale Price $5,575, 22%, 30 months, Finance i Charge $1,0^3.30, Total Payments $4,419.30 C 1980 Chev. Chevette $112.40/month 4-door, 4-speed, PS, PB, AC 4 Sale Price $2,325, 24%, 24 months, Finance S Charge $571.60, Total Payments $2,697.60 I J 9 mooth taste ou. WK ttJLiquor I s Bf> HON J amral 1B3H l^p"^ I^H 'n^>1 1 Vy^l msm 1% " 1 B&liSS IBUTING CO., INC. lem Burlington <J^A?^ ?*? ^ A ' "%? J I >lic on Every Used Car i e value. No gimmicks. s an, straightforward savings. ? r inspection. * all inventory 1 1984 Plym. Horizon ? $127.79/month | 4-door, Auto, PS, PB, AC * ale Price $4,550, 18%, 48 months, Finance * barge $1,782.92, Total Payments $6,133.92 { 984 Chev. Chevetfe t $118.98/month I 4-door, Auto, PS, PB, AC | ;ate Price $4,260, 18%, 48 months, Finance * harge $1,660.04, Total Payment* $5,711.04 J ? 1980 Olds Omega :? $150.84/month \ 2-door, Auto, PS, PB, AC, AM/FM tale Price $4,875, 18%, 42 months, Finance ? lharge $1,659.28, Total Payments $6,335.28 * 1981 Datsun 210 l $120.03/month { i-door, 5-speed, PS, PB, AC, Rear Defroster ? ale Price $1950, 22%, 30 months, Finance ? Zharge $849.90, Total Payments $3,600.90 ? ? *
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Jan. 2, 1986, edition 1
18
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75