ESPN First Take takes on the Wrong Debate

There is a running debate on ESPN First Take--

Home of Skip Bayless and Skip Bayless' well documented eyes. They are in fact, right there.

--that there aren't enough African American head coaches in the NCAA Division 1 programs. They discussed how you could possibly change this travesty.

This debate is stupid. It is wrong. In so many ways. But mainly, they're simply asking the wrong question. (They being ESPN First Take.)

I have multiple problems but let's start with the beginning. This is a census. This is another, more Wikipedia(d) form. It states that around 12.6% of the total American population is African American. The stat they were throwing around on ESPN was that there were about 19 Head Coaches out of 120 something that were black, even assuming that it was 130 total D1 Head Coaches, we still are seeing a 2% higher ratio in total black coaches vs. total black people. That seems like a step in the right direction.

My second issue with this is that the entire conversation is racist. What do these men want? Do they want the Universities, and NFL teams for that matter, to hire black coaches because they're black? Is that why a black coach wants to get hired? Sure. Anyone wants the D1 Head Coaching contract (slash paycheck) but for that reason? Of course not. Coaches want to get hired because people believe they can win.

This kind of conversation is what sets us (the American People) back. The fact that this is even an issue is the problem. The best person for the job should get hired period. And in a job that is all about money I tend to believe this is the case. Most companies (and that's what University Athletic Programs are) won't hire (or choose not to hire) someone because of his or her race, they'll hire them because they can do the damn job. In this case coaching.

Now, I understand that the big successful programs have had predominantly black players for the past twenty or so years, but we seem to be forgetting a couple of factors that I find to be pretty important:

1) Coaches can coach a lot longer than players can play. It's not like head coaching jobs open up every day, and most of the time schools want to hire proven coaches. It's not a young mans game, period. Black or white young men.

2) Just because there are a lot of black players doesn't mean there are a lot of black coaches. And with a population that is mostly white (Talking America here) it's simply statistically more likely that there are more white coaches than black applying for head coaching jobs. (And most of them get ignored for the Urban Meyer's of the World. Dude won a Championship or two, dude is getting hired.)

This is the face I use when I'm plotting my retirement. And subsequent un-retirement and hiring at Ohio State. Booyah.

Here's the argument ESPN First Take should have had:

Is it harder for prospective black//African American coaches to get hired as Division 1 Head Coaches than it is for white coaches?

Because if it is? If it's found that that's true, then that is a problem. That needs to be fixed and addressed. Racial equality is not about getting more black, Asian or purple coaches hired. It's about making sure that race and racial perceptions play no role whatsoever in the hiring process.

The goal should be (should always have been) that the person who is best for the job gets hired. Period.

The way this debate was handled was backwards and accusatory. It will cause more problems then it will solve. Way to start some High School drama, First Take.

But I guess that's just good television.