AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2007 > October > 18
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Good to see Lewis Clinch again
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I saw on Tech’s website that Kenny Anderson has a blog, and it will continue. Without even reading it, I starting thinking that I have more on my mind regarding basketball than football today, so …
If you’re a Tech fan, you should be glad that Lewis Clinch is back. Not just because he can score in more ways than any other player on the team (and that was true last year, before he was shut down), but because I think he’s a good guy.
When he was ruled ineligible for the second semester for violating the school’s honor code (I still don’t know what exactly he did), Tech missed him. Paul Hewitt for quite some time charged onward, and every time he was asked about missing Clinch’s offense, he suggested something to the effect that Tech had quite a few offensive options. And prior to Lewis going down, the coach and player both conceded that Lewis had defensive liabilities anyway.
Paul kind of had to handle it that way; otherwise he’d have looked like he’s leaning on an excuse every time Tech lost. Only after the season did Paul really talk about the hole that Clinch left.
I don’t take a rooting interest in players often, and I wouldn’t call my stance on Clinch a rooting interest, either.
But I like the way he handles himself. He’s mature, level-headed, doesn’t seem to get nervous about questions, or suspicious. He has a sense of humor, doesn’t get too excited or too upset about things — at least in my dealings with him.
He seems to truly enjoy his station as a student-athlete, doesn’t seem to think he’s above others, or fret that he’s not being given a fair shake at this or that. I would root for all players to be like that, not that Tech has a bunch of problem kids otherwise, if I thought my attitude made a difference.
Having thought about it, I think Tech officials handled that situation well, although I already admitted I’m still not sure what exactly Lewis did. That’s a substantial asterisk. There was some very real thought that he was going to be kicked completely out of school and have to wait out a semester or something to re-apply. When he wasn’t, that was a good thing. School officials could’ve imposed a more harsh judgement, I suspect.
I’d like to think some common sense prevailed, although I’m sure Hewitt lobbied to help that process along. That’s a good thing, too.
Some folks point out that Paul tends to get on a soap box (see recent entries on The Hive, which I do check for ideas from time to time), and wonder about his agenda with regards to a recent story about the hiring rate of African-American college football coaches.
I’m not talking here about Paul’s big-picture social agendas, for lack of another phrase. But I truly believe he has his student-athletes’ best interests at heart — not just because they might help him win more games, but because he pulls for them to succeed, and better themselves all the way around. I know he stays in touch with a lot of former players, and they come to him for advice from time to time.
That’s got to be a good thing, too.
Matt
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