March 25^th – March 31^st

-Jimmy Collins Finally gets an apology from Bruce Pearl (March 30^th): In one of the stranger stories to come out of New Orleans over the weekend, Bruce Pearl issued an apology to Jimmy Collins – for something that happened almost 25 years ago. The story, as explained by Collins, went that he was minding his own business, walking down Bourbon Street of all places, when Pearl approached him and decided to offer the unlikely apology. The issue between the two men started in the late eighties when both were Big Ten assistant coaches: Collins at Illinois and Pearl at Iowa. Both men were involved in recruiting Deon Thomas, a Chicago kid from Simeon High School, who was named Mr. Basketball for the state of Illinois in 1989 and was selected as a McDonalds All-American in a stellar class that included Shaquille O’Neal. Supposedly, Pearl taped a phone conversation he had with Thomas, during which it was admitted that Collins and Illinois had offered illegal incentives to Thomas, including a car and cash. Pearl ratted out Collins and sent his tape to the NCAA. Eventually, Collins and Thomas were cleared of any wrongdoing, though the NCAA probe brought about by Pearl’s accusation did result in recruiting restrictions placed on Illinois and a one-year postseason ban. Thomas went on to become the all-time leading scorer at Illinois. Obviously, Collins was pissed off at Pearl for breaking the honor code among coaches, but Pearl never apologized for his actions. There was never any proof presented that Collins was involved in any illegal activities and time moved on. Much later, both men advanced to take head coaching positions in the Horizon League, with Collins at UIC and Pearl at Milwaukee. Though the teams played each other many times, Collins always refused to shake Pearl’s hand at the end of the games, refusing to forgive Pearl of the past. In a bizarre twist, though neither Pearl nor Collins are coaching anymore, Pearl decided to pick the Final Four weekend to bury the hatchet. Collins said he had moved on long ago and politely accepted the apology. But the story is fascinating for how far removed the apology was from the incident. Clearly, Pearl has felt guilty for a long time. Deon Thomas, the third party in the scandal, never forgave Pearl for what he did, saying in 2006, seventeen years after the fact, that it’s “hard to forgive a snake.” The late apology brought to mind the Fab Five documentary recently aired on ESPN. After all the hustle and bustle and excitement the players brought in their two seasons together at Michigan, likely playing against the Thomas-led Illini squad, a scandal involving Chris Webber vacated everything the Fab Five ever accomplished. Webber was the only person who refused to participate in the documentary and his teammates still seemed generally bitter that Webber never acknowledged any wrongdoing or took responsibility for his involvement in the scandal that tarnished their reputation. Because Webber denied everything, his entire team was punished. This is 20 years after the fact, but the players, now grown men, are still upset that Webber hasn’t stepped up and helped to restore their legacy. I marveled at how long people can hold a grudge in sports. I marveled at how much this shit really means to people. It was hard for me to imagine Bruce Pearl actually feeling compelled by an emotion strong enough to attempt to right a wrong committed decades before. But in sports, as in life, reputation is everything. The accusation of scandal is as damaging as actual scandal. Time doesn’t heal all wounds and apologies can never come too late.

-Baseball is Back (March 28^th): Somewhere out in Tokyo, the 2012 MLB season got underway early Wednesday morning. I look forward to baseball more than anything else each year, even though basketball is my preferred sport. It isn’t because the games are more fun to watch or that I’m a particularly avid supporter of a team. I don’t go to that many games on the Northside or the Southside and I don’t watch that many on TV. I guess I just love what baseball symbolizes. It was the sport I grew up on. The first friendships I made started in the dugout and the first handshake I knew was a gentle clapping of mitt on mitt. School and life were the things that happened when it wasn’t nice enough outside to play baseball. When baseball comes back, even though the season lasts forever and the games can be dull as all hell, you know summer is right around the corner. Writing this at the beginning of April, the world seems fresher for having baseball in it. Though the White Sox and the Cubs will stink this year, the excitement stirs inside me as the Opening Days creep closer. I’m just a kid from Chicago, and save for the Bulls in the 90s, our championships have been few and far between, so I guess I can appreciate the things a season offers besides hometown success. A daily ballgame to catch, a new lineup to memorize, a schedule to follow – all during the most glorious days our earth can offer. As the summer settles in, it’ll get hot. It’ll get too hot. The goddamn mosquitoes will be pestering me everywhere I go. I’ll remember how dirty everyone’s pool is. I’ll forget how excited I was for the baseball season to come back. I’ll probably stop following baseball altogether and pick it back up just before the playoffs begin. But I guarantee, come this time next spring, when the April Fools Day pranks have ended and my March Madness brackets are officially eliminated from the betting pools, I’ll sit here happily realizing baseball is coming back. And I’m sure I’ll get excited all over again.