BleedGopher
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http://www.twincities.com/gophers/ci_13763666
Joel Maturi hasn't dodged questions about having to deal with a rash of student-athletes involved in off-court and off-field incidents in recent months.
The University of Minnesota athletics director has seen two of his most high-profile sports programs take a hit in the public eye. But he says he has done his research on each issue. And he has supported decisions made in the cases of eight different players under football coach Tim Brewster and men's basketball coach Tubby Smith.
If the bad publicity was weighing heavily on Maturi, adding to his discomfort over a torn Achilles' tendon, he's not talking about it.
"The timing is not good, obviously," he said in a telephone interview Wednesday while attending Big Ten Conference meetings in Chicago. "But I think that's where as an athletic director I just have to take a deep breath and deal with every issue independently and appropriately. That's the right thing to do. I think we have. I think we will continue to try to do that."
But the situations have piled up.
Basketball players Royce White and Devron Bostick were suspended indefinitely last week, and Trevor Mbakwe is facing a legal issue that could keep him out the entire season. University police then told Maturi this week that White was a possible suspect in a campus burglary Saturday.
"We have to be careful to rush to judgment, in my opinion," Maturi said of Saturday's development. "Based on other issues, Royce is suspended. This does not impact that, one way or the other, at this time because we don't know what the facts are in this case."
Football players Cedric McKinley and Tim Dandridge had been suspended for two games in September for violating unspecified team rules. Two more football players, Michael Carter and Gary Tinsley, received citations, including underage drinking for both, in incidents in October and November but weren't suspended.
Maturi on Wednesday also addressed a situation regarding football player Nathan Tow-Arnett, who is a suspect in a Halloween morning incident in which a 21-year-old woman says she was assaulted, according to Minneapolis police.
"What Nate says is significantly different from what the allegations are," Maturi said. "That's why we have to be careful. That (case) has yet to be determined."
In an interview with the Pioneer Press on Wednesday, Neena Kurian alleged that Tow-Arnett, trying to break up a dispute between her and his girlfriend, threw Kurian against a wall before repeatedly kicking her while she was on the ground.
According to Kurian, she had attended a concert with Tow-Arnett and others the night of Oct. 30 before attending a house party early Halloween morning. Kurian alleged that she and Tow-Arnett's girlfriend got into an argument before Tow-Arnett stepped in.
"Everybody was trying to calm her down, but that's when he got involved and grabbed me by the neck and threw me up against the wall," Kurian said. "I don't know how much she had to drink, but I had three drinks at the most all night. She had been drinking, but he supposedly hadn't been. He drove everyone there."
Tow-Arnett, a sophomore defensive back, was unavailable for comment after Wednesday's practice. Brewster spoke generally about how he has handled each incident with his players.
"The facts are what's important in each situation, and a lot of times the facts are not reported properly," he said. "And so again, we seek out the facts in each situation and handle each situation accordingly."
Smith hadn't been informed about the most-recent situation with White when he talked Tuesday morning about the talented 6-foot-8 former Mr. Basketball from Hopkins High School.
"Much has been given to him, so much is expected of him," Smith told the Pioneer Press. "He's been in the limelight for a long time being a good athlete, (and) with that comes a big responsibility and major accountability.
"It's like a teacher. You have to deal with a kid. Maybe he's doing something he's not supposed to be doing in class. You confront him. You take care of it. You move on. But pretty soon, he can't stay in class. You go in to the principal's office and say you can't teach the kid anymore, I can't work with him anymore, and he has to find someplace else to go. You don't want to ever get to that point."
White has not been charged or accused of a crime. But university police told Maturi that White was seen in Territorial Hall when a laptop was stolen Saturday. White, who was dismissed from DeLaSalle during his junior year of high school for academic violations, already received misdemeanor citations on Oct. 13 for shoplifting and fifth-degree assault after an incident at Macy's in the Mall of America in Bloomington, according to a police report.
"If he were to be found guilty, it's different than him being charged," Maturi said. "I think everybody needs to understand that. If he were to be found guilty, then I'm sure he would be dealt with in the appropriate manner."
Overall, Maturi said there isn't a blanket approach to prevent more incidents from occurring.
"If anybody even believes that the coaches aren't talking to the kids or that the athletic director and the administration aren't talking to the young people, I think they would be wrong," he said. "We know how highly negative this visibility is at this time. We're not naïve to it. We will continue to try to make our young people aware of appropriate behavior and conduct, and not put themselves into positions where, even if they're innocent, people might accuse them of being involved in something negative."
Go Gophers!!
Joel Maturi hasn't dodged questions about having to deal with a rash of student-athletes involved in off-court and off-field incidents in recent months.
The University of Minnesota athletics director has seen two of his most high-profile sports programs take a hit in the public eye. But he says he has done his research on each issue. And he has supported decisions made in the cases of eight different players under football coach Tim Brewster and men's basketball coach Tubby Smith.
If the bad publicity was weighing heavily on Maturi, adding to his discomfort over a torn Achilles' tendon, he's not talking about it.
"The timing is not good, obviously," he said in a telephone interview Wednesday while attending Big Ten Conference meetings in Chicago. "But I think that's where as an athletic director I just have to take a deep breath and deal with every issue independently and appropriately. That's the right thing to do. I think we have. I think we will continue to try to do that."
But the situations have piled up.
Basketball players Royce White and Devron Bostick were suspended indefinitely last week, and Trevor Mbakwe is facing a legal issue that could keep him out the entire season. University police then told Maturi this week that White was a possible suspect in a campus burglary Saturday.
"We have to be careful to rush to judgment, in my opinion," Maturi said of Saturday's development. "Based on other issues, Royce is suspended. This does not impact that, one way or the other, at this time because we don't know what the facts are in this case."
Football players Cedric McKinley and Tim Dandridge had been suspended for two games in September for violating unspecified team rules. Two more football players, Michael Carter and Gary Tinsley, received citations, including underage drinking for both, in incidents in October and November but weren't suspended.
Maturi on Wednesday also addressed a situation regarding football player Nathan Tow-Arnett, who is a suspect in a Halloween morning incident in which a 21-year-old woman says she was assaulted, according to Minneapolis police.
"What Nate says is significantly different from what the allegations are," Maturi said. "That's why we have to be careful. That (case) has yet to be determined."
In an interview with the Pioneer Press on Wednesday, Neena Kurian alleged that Tow-Arnett, trying to break up a dispute between her and his girlfriend, threw Kurian against a wall before repeatedly kicking her while she was on the ground.
According to Kurian, she had attended a concert with Tow-Arnett and others the night of Oct. 30 before attending a house party early Halloween morning. Kurian alleged that she and Tow-Arnett's girlfriend got into an argument before Tow-Arnett stepped in.
"Everybody was trying to calm her down, but that's when he got involved and grabbed me by the neck and threw me up against the wall," Kurian said. "I don't know how much she had to drink, but I had three drinks at the most all night. She had been drinking, but he supposedly hadn't been. He drove everyone there."
Tow-Arnett, a sophomore defensive back, was unavailable for comment after Wednesday's practice. Brewster spoke generally about how he has handled each incident with his players.
"The facts are what's important in each situation, and a lot of times the facts are not reported properly," he said. "And so again, we seek out the facts in each situation and handle each situation accordingly."
Smith hadn't been informed about the most-recent situation with White when he talked Tuesday morning about the talented 6-foot-8 former Mr. Basketball from Hopkins High School.
"Much has been given to him, so much is expected of him," Smith told the Pioneer Press. "He's been in the limelight for a long time being a good athlete, (and) with that comes a big responsibility and major accountability.
"It's like a teacher. You have to deal with a kid. Maybe he's doing something he's not supposed to be doing in class. You confront him. You take care of it. You move on. But pretty soon, he can't stay in class. You go in to the principal's office and say you can't teach the kid anymore, I can't work with him anymore, and he has to find someplace else to go. You don't want to ever get to that point."
White has not been charged or accused of a crime. But university police told Maturi that White was seen in Territorial Hall when a laptop was stolen Saturday. White, who was dismissed from DeLaSalle during his junior year of high school for academic violations, already received misdemeanor citations on Oct. 13 for shoplifting and fifth-degree assault after an incident at Macy's in the Mall of America in Bloomington, according to a police report.
"If he were to be found guilty, it's different than him being charged," Maturi said. "I think everybody needs to understand that. If he were to be found guilty, then I'm sure he would be dealt with in the appropriate manner."
Overall, Maturi said there isn't a blanket approach to prevent more incidents from occurring.
"If anybody even believes that the coaches aren't talking to the kids or that the athletic director and the administration aren't talking to the young people, I think they would be wrong," he said. "We know how highly negative this visibility is at this time. We're not naïve to it. We will continue to try to make our young people aware of appropriate behavior and conduct, and not put themselves into positions where, even if they're innocent, people might accuse them of being involved in something negative."
Go Gophers!!