Allen Pinket: ND Needs Criminals

[GoldenIsThyFame]

Annnnnd go.



Allen Pinkett: Notre Dame Needs ‘Criminals’ To Be Successful « CBS Chicago

Notre Dame has had its fair share of off-the-field incidents over the past few seasons.

But for Fighting Irish radio analyst and former NFLer Allen Pinkett, he’s not concerned with off-the-field issues – as long as the person involved is a good enough football player.

“I’ve always felt like, to have a successful team, you gotta have a few bad citizens on the team,” Pinkett told The McNeil and Spiegel Show. “I mean, that’s how Ohio State used to win all the time. They would have two or three guys that were criminals. That just adds to the chemistry of the team. I think Notre Dame is growing because maybe they have some guys that are doing something worthy of a suspension, which creates edge on the football team. You can’t have a football team full of choir boys. You get your butt kicked if you have a team full of choir boys. You gotta have a little bit of edge, but the coach has to be the dictator and ultimate ruler.”

So which type of criminal does Pinkett want in South Bend?

“I don’t want any mass murders or rapists,” Pinkett said. “I want guys that maybe get caught drinking that are underage, or guys that maybe got arrested because they got in a fight at a bar, or guys that are willing to cuss in public and don’t mind the repercussions of it. That’s the type of criminal I’m talking about.”

When given a chance to clarify his comments, Pinkett wasn’t backing down.

“I absolutely meant that,” he said. “Chemistry is so important on a football team. You have to have a couple of bad guys that sorta teeter on that edge to add to the flavor of the guys that are going to always do right. … You look at the teams that have one in the past. They always have a couple of criminals.

Heading into the 2012 season, Notre Dame’s Tommy Rees and linebacker Carlo Calabrese have been suspended for the season opener for their roles in a skirmish with police following an off-campus party in May. More recently, running back Cierre Wood and defensive end Justin Utupo have been suspended for the first two games of the season.

 

[Cali_domer]

This will go over well with ND administration. I wonder if he will be suspended also.

 

[clashmore_mike]

I do like the little jab at osu, but he gone.

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

I understand the point he is trying to make, but it comes off sounding realllllllly bad.

 

[gkIrish]

I understand the point he is trying to make, but if comes off sounding realllllllly bad.

I agree. He uses the wrong words to make a somewhat compelling argument. Substitute in "tough guys" for criminals and I agree with him.

He likely gone tho

 

[woolybug25]

Oddly, I agree with him.

 

[DSully1995]

at the start i was like oh god, but when hes starts explaining it more, underage drinking or cussing no big deal

 

[Patulski]

“I want guys that maybe get caught drinking that are underage, or guys that maybe got arrested because they got in a fight at a bar, or guys that are willing to cuss in public and don’t mind the repercussions of it. That’s the type of criminal I’m talking about.”

Notre Dame has always had these guys. Unfortunately for Pinkett, he is in a position where he must be politically correct.

 

[FLDomer]

I agree too...works for FSU and the SEC

 

[PLACforever]

So he's not ok with MASS murderers, is he ok with regular murderers?

 

[Cali_domer]

So he's not ok with MASS murderers, is he ok with regular murderers?

Part timers only need apply is my guess.

 

[WaveDomer]

So he's not ok with MASS murderers, is he ok with regular murderers?

And the real problem with recruiting mass murderers and rapists is that you can't guarantee they'll stay for 4 years.

 

[Veer option]

Makes sense to me.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Perhaps this is Tommy's true calling. He can get a face tatoo, tap into his inner thug, and provide the lockerroom edge that ND is so clearly lacking.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/bkoUNaBS2wg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[PANDFAN]

I agree too...works for FSU and the SEC

they are more into stealing and beating women

 

[NYMIKE6]

A former coach i used to work with used to use the analogy of making a pizza to the players.

"Making a great football team is like making a great pizza pie.... you need the dough, sauce, cheese, meat, peppers and onions or whatever else you like."

Makes sense... although i don't agree with the term "criminal"... you need some guys that are laid back, cerebral, loud, crazy and so on to make a great group of guys...

 

[IrishBlood81]

Interesting. I agree with what been posted but, the thing is, criminals aren't intelligent enough to get into ND.
I think Lynch is the type of player he is referring too, and honestly, I don't think he added to the chemistry but took away from it, from what I could pick up in the articles I read.

 

[stlnd01]

I'd agree you don't want a "team full of choir boys," but "criminals" is just the wrong word, especially in today's college football when felony charges come by the dozen in some programs.
Besides, I'm not sure that college kids drinking underage or "cussing in public" (??) really meets anyone's definition of "criminal" these days.
I get what he's trying to say, but, yowser, just shut up before you get fired.

 

[Old Man Mike]

"Criminals"... no... bad choice of words. Potentially violent individuals who somehow keep it under control in civilized situations? I'm with him there. All three of my D1 brothers were employed as [serious] bouncers at times in their careers. They didn't mind the idea of knocking "troublemakers" out if that's what was needed. At least one of my brothers [the one who likes to tell these stories] regularly was arrested on saturday or sunday nights after the game was over. Why? His best football buddies liked to see him knock guys out in bars with one punch. Lost teeth were deemed extra credit. He said that he'd spent nights in every jail in ... state censored... until the coaching staff would hear about it and get them released into custody. "But Coach, this guy threw the first punch!!" "Why??" "He thought that I was ogling his girl." "Were you??" ..."ummmm. , of course not, Coach".

One of my brothers heard that three OSU football players were messing up a dance in the hometown and had no hesitation in going down there [he was phoned to come down and help], and knocking out the quarterback, breaking the nose and sending the linebacker to the hospital with a seriously messed up face, and watching the tackle just put two hands up to say "No mas, Man".

During my era, Monte Stickles was well known for terrorizing people who got in his way. When I was in grad school at Iowa State, defensive tackle and heavyweight wrestler Ted Tuinstra, had to be rescued from jail about every other week for putting numbers of overexcited "challengers" into the emergency ward.

I think that there should be more bounds on this "streak" that these guys had than what showed, but that is at root the "Jeff Faine" mentality that on every play wants to fight and bury the opponent.

So, with that "clarification"[?] maybe I'm with Pinkett a bit.

 

[ErieIrish13]

Criminals is a bad word to use. I like "thug" better. And I'm all for a couple of thugs on the squad. But most likely, they won't get past admissions. That's the biggest obstacle. It isn't choir boys or criminals, It's all grades. Usually the top players don't have the best grades. That's why ND has never went after them (and got them)... and never will.

 

[Rhode Irish]

I understand the point he is trying to make, but it comes off sounding realllllllly bad.

Exactly what I was going to say. I was on some dominant teams in high school, and we had a couple guys who were always getting in trouble, getting kicked off the team and getting brought back, getting thrown out of games, etc. And we LOVED them. They weren't our best players, but they would kick the **** out of someone who took a shot at one of our best players. You do need enforcers. You need guys with edge, or swag or whatever you want to call it. But I think saying you need "criminals" is not only taking it too far, but also really missing the point.

erieirish13: awesome sig pic, man.

 

[ErieIrish13]

Exactly what I was going to say. I was on some dominant teams in high school, and we had a couple guys who were always getting in trouble, getting kicked off the team and getting brought back, getting thrown out of games, etc. And we LOVED them. They weren't our best players, but they would kick the **** out of someone who took a shot at one of our best players. You do need enforcers. You need guys with edge, or swag or whatever you want to call it. But I think saying you need "criminals" is not only taking it too far, but also really missing the point.

erieirish13: awesome sig pic, man.

Thanks. TP tweeted it a few weeks back and it's awesome, so I'm using it

 

[Old Man Mike]

As to whether these enforcer types [Good word reminder Rhode; I always felt better on my basketball teams when we had a couple of "enforcers"] can get into ND: being a violent individual doesn't mean that you're not intelligent. Stickles got in. Faine got in. Zorich got in. "Pseudo-choirboys" like Aaron Taylor and Mike Golic got in and on and on. Two of my three brothers could have gotten in [130-140 IQs].

I think that a bigger problem now than then and also at ND/South Bend than certain other locales, is the completely non-private nature of ND football player activities. The local citizenry of my bar blasting brother never even heard of those incidents. If they had, they'd probably applauded because they really liked the local football team. Today everything associated negatively with Notre Dame becomes an instant national "scandal". Tough Zero-Mistake environment ND lives in.

 

[Rhode Irish]

Swarbrick disagrees with Pinket, unsurprisingly. Called the comments "nonsense."

 

[loomis41973]

Absolutely spot on, too bad he used a very poor choice of words.

This team has been SOFT for a long time but i see a little bit of a change under BK...hope he keeps it up.

 

[DomeLover3]

As we've established I think he meant more of thug than criminal. I definitely see where he's coming from. You need a few bad @ss guys on your team, pretty much no matter the sport. It fires up the teammates... kind of like the "goons" John Chaney the old Temple coach would send into the game to send a message... Not necessarily that we need on field altercations, but a guy whose not afraid to pump up the team

 

[Rhode Irish]

Swarbrick disagrees with Pinket, unsurprisingly. Called the comments "nonsense."

I should have added: of course he said it was nonsense. He has to say that, whether he agrees with the underlying sentiment or not.

 

[gkIrish]

Headline on ESPN.com

but we are irrelevant

 

[pumpdog20]

Having a hard time understanding how having a team full of "choir boys" is bad for team chemistry.

 

[Veer option]

Recollecting, I remember the 2010 game vs Stanford when Carlo stopped Owen Marecic on a fourth down play and in the process ripped Marecic's helmet off (refs game Stanford the first down). I thought to myself, that is the type of aggressive player ND has been missing for years. IMO a good football team needs a couple players that are wired on the edge of a belligerent attitude.