Bob Woodruff, Joe Paterno, and the lights at Neyland
Former Tennessee Athletic Director Bob Woodruff was a crafty old dude. I had the privilege to interview him in his office during my undergraduate years at UT as part of a journalism project. I was researching the plans (that were never fulfilled) to retrofit the south end of Neyland Stadium so that the Vols basketball team could play a few selected home games there. This was the mid-1970s when Bernard King, Ernie Grunfeld and Co. were lighting up men’s hoops like a bonfire. The old Stokely Athletic Center was not big enough to hold the excitement of those days. All-night lines for student tickets were becoming commonplace, especially for the big games like Kentucky (that 103-98 war remains the best basketball game at any level I’ve ever witnessed in person).
The shame that keeps on giving
In the wake of the emerging scandal at Penn State, Joe Paterno was fired and replaced with long-time assistant Tom Bradley on an interim basis until a full-time replacement could be found. It was confirmed this week that New England patriots assistant Bill O’Brian would be named the new Nittany Lion head coach. The problem for some prominent Penn Staters is that O’Brian has no connection to the school — not as a former player or coach.
