News
Bobby Knight, chancellor moving forward after nasty market incident
Published: Feb 03, 2004 - 10:59 PM
LUBBOCK, Texas - (KRT) - Speculation swirled around Texas Tech about how school officials would handle Bob Knight's latest dust-up, a public confrontation with university chancellor Dr. David Smith. Knight received a public reprimand Tuesday as athletic director Gerald Myers called the argument a "misunderstanding." School officials had discussed a possible 3-5 day suspension earlier in the day.
The reprimand, Knight's first punishment at Tech, was in the form of a four-paragraph statement. Knight, 63, was on the bench Tuesday night when the Red Raiders hosted Baylor at United Spirit Arena. He received a loud ovation when he walked onto the court before the game.
"This is a misunderstanding and has now been rectified," Myers said in the statement. "The matter has been resolved in the best interest of the university."
Also in the statement, Knight said he regretted the situation turned out the way it did.
"I look forward to finishing the season in a strong fashion, and I am glad the situation is behind me so that I can return to the business of coaching," Knight said.
Smith was quoted as saying he applauded the efforts of university president Dr. Jon Whitmore and Myers.
"We look forward to the continuation of what is already a successful season," Smith said.
A reporter approached Smith as he left his office Tuesday, and Smith started running through the parking lot. "Talk to Dr. Whitmore," Smith said before taking off in his new BMW convertible.
Whitmore's reply?
"Read the press release, please."
The news release does not give more specifics on what happened around noon Monday at Market Street, a restaurant inside United Supermarket in Lubbock. It was then that Smith and Knight got into a heated exchange near the salad bar before both left, school officials said.
There was no physical contact and no damage to the store.
Since the incident, students, fans, news organizations and Internet chat rooms have been buzzing nonstop. What should Tech do? How will Knight respond?
Smith and Whitmore were buried in their offices all day. Myers' personal assistant, Judy Dewbre, said she fielded "about 80 calls" before losing track around 11:30 a.m. The number of calls supporting Knight far outweighed those that didn't, she said.
Officials inside the athletic department tried to maintain their routine. But it was almost impossible. Media outlets from all over called Chris Cook, Tech's assistant athletic director for media relations. Cook estimated 30 to 35, not counting repeat calls.
"All wanted to know what was going on," Cook said.
Students who arrived early for the Baylor game said Knight was the day's No. 1 topic.
Travis Hanby, a sophomore, said his history professor talked about the Knight-Smith situation for the first 30 minutes of class. "He was asking everybody's opinions," Hanby said.
One student's opinion was hard to miss. Sophomore Armen Williams of Mansfield had his upper torso painted red. Written in black letters, he wrote "I (heart) Coach Knight."
"The media, you guys sit on the edge of your chairs waiting for him to do something," Williams said. "This time, the media jumped the gun in saying that he messed up. If he reacted as bad as some of these stories said, he would have been punished in some sort of way."
Senior Kyle Clifton of Midland said the incident, regardless of the outcome, gives Tech a black eye.
"It makes us look pretty bad," Clifton said.
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? 2004, The Dallas Morning News.
Visit The Dallas Morning News on the World Wide Web at http://www.dallasnews.com
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
"This is a misunderstanding and has now been rectified," Myers said in the statement. "The matter has been resolved in the best interest of the university."
Also in the statement, Knight said he regretted the situation turned out the way it did.
"I look forward to finishing the season in a strong fashion, and I am glad the situation is behind me so that I can return to the business of coaching," Knight said.
Smith was quoted as saying he applauded the efforts of university president Dr. Jon Whitmore and Myers.
"We look forward to the continuation of what is already a successful season," Smith said.
A reporter approached Smith as he left his office Tuesday, and Smith started running through the parking lot. "Talk to Dr. Whitmore," Smith said before taking off in his new BMW convertible.
Whitmore's reply?
"Read the press release, please."
The news release does not give more specifics on what happened around noon Monday at Market Street, a restaurant inside United Supermarket in Lubbock. It was then that Smith and Knight got into a heated exchange near the salad bar before both left, school officials said.
There was no physical contact and no damage to the store.
Since the incident, students, fans, news organizations and Internet chat rooms have been buzzing nonstop. What should Tech do? How will Knight respond?
Smith and Whitmore were buried in their offices all day. Myers' personal assistant, Judy Dewbre, said she fielded "about 80 calls" before losing track around 11:30 a.m. The number of calls supporting Knight far outweighed those that didn't, she said.
Officials inside the athletic department tried to maintain their routine. But it was almost impossible. Media outlets from all over called Chris Cook, Tech's assistant athletic director for media relations. Cook estimated 30 to 35, not counting repeat calls.
"All wanted to know what was going on," Cook said.
Students who arrived early for the Baylor game said Knight was the day's No. 1 topic.
Travis Hanby, a sophomore, said his history professor talked about the Knight-Smith situation for the first 30 minutes of class. "He was asking everybody's opinions," Hanby said.
One student's opinion was hard to miss. Sophomore Armen Williams of Mansfield had his upper torso painted red. Written in black letters, he wrote "I (heart) Coach Knight."
"The media, you guys sit on the edge of your chairs waiting for him to do something," Williams said. "This time, the media jumped the gun in saying that he messed up. If he reacted as bad as some of these stories said, he would have been punished in some sort of way."
Senior Kyle Clifton of Midland said the incident, regardless of the outcome, gives Tech a black eye.
"It makes us look pretty bad," Clifton said.
---
? 2004, The Dallas Morning News.
Visit The Dallas Morning News on the World Wide Web at http://www.dallasnews.com
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.
