Late to the party, as usual, but I was at the Wisconsin/Michigan game a week ago (my not close to annual visit to Mad-town) and have spent way too much idle time thinking about it since then.
My take:
(1) On the one hand, it seems like a lot to fire a guy over an outburst of that sort, there's no question that if I did that in my work place, I would be escorted out, forever. Similarly, if I were to do something like that in a handshake line for one of the youth sports teams that I coach, I would never be allowed back. In the *real* world, that's a firing offense.
(2) In the world of professional sports (and we'll just slide B1G MBB and FB into that category without thinking too deeply on it), it's not a firing offense unless there's more going on. At least not the first time. Strange, especially since presumably they are setting the standard for what sports competitions are supposed to look like.
(3) I agree that Gard didn't need to do what he did in the line, but having seen and been in a lot of handshake lines over the years, it's pretty common for someone to want to explain themselves when someone calls them out for something. It's probably not often a good idea, but it's a common response. But it wasn't the *discussion* that led to punches being thrown--it was Howard doing however you want to describe what he did to Krabbenhoft.
(4) I'm fascinated by the efforts to cast blame on the Wisconsin coaching staff, including Krabbenhoft. Once Howard grabbed Gard and the *conversation* escalated (quickly), people from both sides dived in to try to separate them, Krabbenhoft among them. For all the smoke about, "he must have said something," no one--not Howard, not a Michigan assistant, not a Michigan player, not a reporter--nobody has said boo about what Krabbenhoft said. If it were even a little more inflammatory than some version of "break it up," someone would have mentioned it. I think it's clutching at straws for people hoping to generate conflict, generate revenue, clicks, likes, whatever, or defend the honor of the Maize and Blue, but struggling to find ways to do it.
(5) As a student of his era, it was really cool to see Michael Finley's number retired during that game. Finley was part of the core that transformed Wisconsin basketball, giving we alumni a reason to hope that we could aspire to more than making the tournament every few decades. I am surprised it took as long as it did to recognize him as such. I won't forget watching him live--he was incredible. If he had played for teams like the one that Kaminsky played for, his name would have been in the rafters much earlier.
Which brings me to where we are on February 28, with the Badgers likely to end up with at least a share of the B1G regular season title. Pinch me. The sustained success of this program is remarkable, and I'm thrilled that my first trip to Wisconsin in a long time coincided with one of the more comfortable wins, over a marquis opponent, during this wild season.
On Wisconsin.
:-)
