Why do Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith have to be good black coaches instead of just good coaches?

Question

I support the hiring of qualified people for any job. I could care less if they are black, white, hispanic, or any other race. I think the way to get more black coaches in college football is to encourage the qualified ones not to give up. The article on Jessie Jackson and how he spoke up for the hiring of black coaches in the NCAA is a slap in the face of anyone who is not white and is trying to get one of those jobs.I would want to get the job based on my ability not because there was preasure to hire me because of my race. I bet every team in the NCAA tries to hire the best coach they can get and don't care what race he is. I sincerely regret that Dungy's Superbowl victory is being overshadowed by this. How many college football fans would support the hiring of Tony Dungy to fill their next vacancy.

Please answer the last part of the question. Would you support the hiring of Tony Dungy as the next coach of the NCAA team you support?

Answer 1

I strongly agree with you on this one. It's a shame that everywhere you hear Dungy as the "first African American coach to win a Super Bowl" or to he Lovie Smith as the "first African American coach to make it to the Super Bowl. They were the best coaches in the NFL; it was coincidence that they both made it to the Super Bowl and that they were black. Any sports team should hire any coach they deem worthy by their skill, experience, and if they can get the job done, not by color. It may be long time before we don't have to hear "African American" in front of every achievement by a black person, but I can't wait for that to happen. I would definitely hire Dungy as my coach, but I seriously doubt he'll leave Indy after a Super Bowl win.

Answer 2

I am not naive to think that race relations in this country are great. They are much better than before, but not great. Having said that, This is about a football game, NOT RACE. I for one couldn't care less that Lovie Smith is black. He is the coach of my favorite team. He just happens to be black. He could be red with purple spots for that matter. I have answered this question a couple of times on this board, and don't see the big deal. What people don't see is that football is the ultimate team sport. No one player can do his job without the other 10 on the field. No one player or coach is bigger than the team. Does being black make Lovie or Tony Dungee a better coach? NO. Should it matter. NO. It's about the biggest football game of the year for these guys. NOT RACE. Even Tony Dungee and Lovie are downplaying it. Both guys have been class acts all the way. While they understand their place in history, they realize it's all about the TEAM. You want to know why the media keeps bringing stuff like this up? They have to. The african-american population in this country is the only segment of the population they have to do this for. Why? Do you hear anyone yelling that there are no Hispanic head coaches? What about Ron Rivera, the Bears defensive co-ordinator? Is he making a big stink about not getting a head coaching job because he is hispanic? What about Chinese head coaches? Polish? Did you hear anyone jumping up and down when the White Sox won the World Series about how great it was for the Latino population? No, if an african-american does it, they have to make a big deal about it. In this age of political correctness, everyone is afraid to say the wrong thing and do the wrong thing, for fear of not being "sensitive" to the race and differences of others, and therefore being labeled a racist. I say lets just get back to the game of football. I for one can't wait until the Bears take apart the Colts. Go Bears, and thank you Lovie Smith.

Answer 3

You are right and it sad but there was and still is something wrong. There are only 6, may be 7 now black coaches in the NFL out of 32 head coaching spots thats not even half. There are no Hispanic or Asian coaches. Our history as Americans is so full of racism and discrimination that it has stopped us from advancing to the point where race doesnt matter. They should be looked at as just good coaches because science says that race doesnt exist. There is only one race and that is the human race. So yeah I would support Dungy but not because he is black but because he is a damn good coach.

Answer 4

i agree with you completely...i'm not saying hirings in the past or even the recent past, like maybe the past 5 years, have not been at least partly on the basis of racial preference, but i have to say that there is way too big a deal being made of black coaches in the super bowl and overall about the minority coaching landscape...first of all, dungy is a great coach, i am a bucs fan and watched him take a bunch of teams to the playoffs after the bucs had been a sorry franchise for years and years, then he gets fired, gruden comes in, wins the super bowl with tony's players and defense, and then can do nothing on his own...second off, i think the main reason for the lack of minority football coaches is the sheer numbers, there are just not many black coaching candidates compared to the number of caucasians...finally, jessie jackson is a nutcase, he needs to shut up and go do something useful with himself

Answer 5

These advocates think that every one in the world owes them and their whole race some kind of retribution for something no one alive today had anything to do with - also they must be socialists since they do not believe that "the most qualified person" should get the job, but instead we should spread these jobs. It's stupid - now why don't we suggest using the same exact mentality to the proffesional athletes, i.e. from now on in the NBA, each team must have 2 non-black players starting and playing in each game... would that racist Al Sharpton or Jesse Jackson agree with that?? Hell no - they are racists who are in this for the money - they pretend to want equal rights but in reality they are just as bad if not worse then those racist white politicians of the young America - they don't want equality, they want everything

Answer 6

Unfortunately we still live in a world where race plays a huge factor. I totally agree with you Dungy and Lovie are outstanding coaches whether they are black or not. Hopefully one day race won't matter and coaches will be jugded on their abilities instead of race.

Answer 7

It gives the media something to b*tch about. I wish I could say more, but others have said exactly how I feel, and a few quite eloquently at that. I also wish I could answer your last question, but I don't have a college team, I just enjoy watching all the games on Saturdays.

IS IT FOOTBALL SEASON YET?

Cheers!

Answer 8

They see themselves as coaches first, but the media likes to hype firsts for minorities. I think the NFL, in an effort to show the world its making progress with minority coaches, pushes this!

Personally, I'd like to be known for being a 'great coach'. Not a 'great coach...for a black guy'.

Answer 9

i actually agree that the low number of ncaa minority coaches is a little absurd, but i did some math related to nfl head coaching. 6 out of 32 head coaches are black, which translates to 19%, which is actually higher than the percentage of african-americans in the country. so the "lack" of black head coaches is nothing more than media nonsense

Answer 10

Thank you for asking the question.

I hate it when anyone feels that they need to bring up the color of someone's skin!!! WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE??!! NONE!! ZERO!!
Anyone who thinks that skin color, nationality or religion mean anything are just prejudice...whether they think so or not.

There is alot of subdued racism in this country and this subject is a perfect example of it.