Editor, Times-Union: Much to my chagrin, my friend Mr. Gerard chose to devote his entire News Views column to the University of Notre Dame football program choosing to take the high road in the face of academic fraud. Much of the same subject matter had been covered earlier in the week by the Times-Union sportswriter. I have come to expect better from Mr. Gerard. First of all, Notre Dame in all reality went to Tallahassee 4-2 instead of 6-0 due to “controversial” calls. In the Stanford game quarterback Everett Golson threw a Hail Mary pass to receiver Corey Robinson, which on instant replay clearly showed the ball touched the ground before being scooped up by Robinson. This resulted in a first down and touchdown near the end of the game. In the North Carolina game, a “rarely” used call, something called roughing the holder penalty was called on North Carolina, giving the ball back to Notre Dame which led to the winning touchdown. Now as for Notre Dame's high road, always playing by the rules nonsense, a look back over just five years reveals quite a different story. Jimmy “turftoe” Clausen had at least two underage drinking incidents and was involved in a bar fight. In 2010, the tragic death of videographer Declan Sullivan happened. He fell to his death when the scissor lift in which he was working tipped over in winds exceeding 50 miles per hour. Where were the adults in charge? This young man needn’t have died. A short time later a 19-year-old St. Mary’s student committed suicide after a rape allegation against a Notre Dame football player was botched by campus police. Another unnecessary death. The player in question remained in uniform and continued to play throughout the remainder of the season. To quote Mr. Gerard, “Seriously, if rape allegations and a botched investigation won't keep you off the team ... .” In the midst of all this was Michael Floyd’s three DUIs, which for most folks results in jail time. Most recently former quarterback Tommy Rees and teammate Carlo Calabrese had a few too many. Mr. Rees was charged with resisting arrest, battery to law enforcement, minor consumption and public intoxication. Mr. Calabrese was arrested for disorderly conduct and threatening officers with “My people are coming to get you.” And who could forget Manti Te’o and his famous imaginary dead girlfriend. So if the young, talented Mr. Winston did any of the things he’s alleged to have done, no one died. Before anyone considers jumping on that grand, shiny, white Notre Dame bandwagon, remember that wagon has been through some mighty slimy mud. Janet Collins Etna Green, via email
