Barnett era review

This one will be short and sweet.

Gary is a Buff. He spent much of his career living and coaching in our great state. He grew up as a coach under the tutilage of McCartney.

He left to be head coach of Northwestern where he performed some genuine miracles. As a result he became the hottest coaching prospect in the country. But he shunned interest from the likes of Georgia, Notre Dame and Texas. He asked to have an escape clause written into his contract that would allow him to leave without penalty to coach at Colorado, should the opportunity arrise. When it did he bolted to his dream job. I love him for this.

Gary had some success at CU. He was a good guy, who loved the school and his team. The so called CU scandal cast a shadow over him though I truly believe that he tried everything in his power to run a clean and disciplined program. The biggest mistake he made was making stupid (yet accurate) comments about Katie Hnida in front of a news camera. The media blitz lasted longer than it should have and he survived it and his Hnida comment suspension stoically. Many called for his head but none of them could enunciate with credibility what he had done wrong.

I said many times during the "scandal" that those who want to talk about firing the coach should base that discussion on on-the-field performance. They were falling all over themselves looking for some other smoking gun that didn't exist. In the end, in a weird way I was pleased that he was dismissed for failure to produce the type of on-field performance that the Univerity expects.

I'm also glad that he got a fair settlement. I wish Gary well. He is a good man who lost his dream job. But that's the way the business works. I hope that he regains his reputation.