Lawsuit settlement will impact Kansas football and more
By Stan Unruh
Kansas football has been through a lot over the past ten seasons. Another school’s decision this week could have a dramatic impact all of college sports.
Anyone who has played football knows it is a brutal game. Some coaches yell, swear, threaten and that’s when they are in a good mood.
Some coaches do the exact opposite.
As a matter of fact, I have seen things said and done at football practices that were far from pleasant. On the other hand, I enjoyed every minute of it.
Kansas football fans remember reading and hearing about the brutal things that allegedly occurred when Mark Mangino was coach.
Players told about the verbal abuse and what they thought was inappropriate contact. One player’s parents considered a lawsuit against Mangino, according to report by ESPN’s Joe Schad.
Now, a decision by the University of Illinois this week will have a dramatic impact on all of college football and other sports.
The school agreed to pay former Illini offensive lineman Simon Cvijanovic $250,000 to settle an injury claim.
He used social media to celebrate the payout.
In 2015, Cvijanovic alleged coach Tim Beckman forced him to play through injuries. The complaints opened a wider investigation and cost Beckman his job as explained in the Champaign News-Gazette
How might players have responded to Mangino had this University of Illinois decision come in 2006?
Fans, coaches or athletic administrators do not want to think about what might have been.
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Coach David Beaty and Kansas football are far from the Mangino era.
I’m not writing to express support or to criticize the former
coach.
This is 2017 and all college athletic administrators will have to think long and hard about what the University of Illinois did with Cvijanovic and how it will change the game.