Very interesting read
https://twitter.com/buttesports/status/1553058136822464513?s=21&t=ZVdr39MmRIask6yEXYFZVA
https://twitter.com/buttesports/status/1553058136822464513?s=21&t=ZVdr39MmRIask6yEXYFZVA
-
Hi Guest, want to participate in the discussions, keep track of read/unread posts and more? Create your free account and increase the benefits of your eGriz.com experience today!
Zac Crews - Updated
- Thread starter HookedonGriz
- Start date
- Status
RainierGriz
Well-known member
HookedonGriz said:
Great insight to the situation.
I am glad that this article has publicly shed some light on this. I have been getting pieces of info over the last 8 months, and while I am not going to condone the actions that started this, from what I know is that Griz athletics and more specifically, Griz football botched this and did Zac a disservice. Zac was willing to take his lumps, and address everyone that had questions, but the coaches, the athletic department thought that everything would blow over and it would be business as usual. Now instead of making an effort to stand behind Zac, and work through this with him, they have decided to cut bait after making a big miscalculation and abandon the kid. For everyone that thought allowing Crews to become a Griz would be a bad look and possibly influence recruiting, how do you think the optics of throwing a kid away when things get tough. He had confidence in the coaches and did everything they asked?
wbtfg
Well-known member
Really good article. It's obviously from the Crews family perspective, but certainly an interesting read.
When this first broke my initial thought was that he would need to address the team and then basically follow a checklist of actions to prove to coaches/players/public/media that he understood the consequences of his actions and that completing these tasks would earn him a spot on the team. Interesting that the coaching staff advised him against all of this and was basically waiting for everything to blow over.
now appears he's essentially gray-shirting at MSU?
When this first broke my initial thought was that he would need to address the team and then basically follow a checklist of actions to prove to coaches/players/public/media that he understood the consequences of his actions and that completing these tasks would earn him a spot on the team. Interesting that the coaching staff advised him against all of this and was basically waiting for everything to blow over.
now appears he's essentially gray-shirting at MSU?
grizindabox said:
That was tough to read. This is not one of Bobby's finest moments. You are correct ref recruiting. I think the Griz essentially ghosting Crews will be seen by future recruits as worse than allowing him on the team....and just as importantly...future recruits parents.
He will be a cat soon enough, and we'll all hate watching him play against the Griz...
“I trusted those guys because they were going to be my future coaches,” Zac says. “At Sentinel it is always, ‘Yes coach, no coach.’ I really wanted to trust them. I did, full heartedly.”
Sammy Akem admitted slamming him. How about the rest of you bastards(players, administrators and coaches)? Step forward, take a bow! Claim your victory.
Woke cancel culture.
Montana State...
uke:
Sammy Akem admitted slamming him. How about the rest of you bastards(players, administrators and coaches)? Step forward, take a bow! Claim your victory.
Woke cancel culture.
Montana State...
uke:RainierGriz
Well-known member
wbtfg said:
In the article it states that the team was not willing to hear from crews and it was at that time the staff felt there was nothing else to do but revoke his offer. Only thing I can think that could have been done better was to try and get to that conclusion sooner. Sounds like the staff was hopeful that the team would be willing to hear Cruz out, never ended up being the case. There’s not much in the manual on how to navigate those waters. Tough deal that he won’t get to play for Montana but I do wish him well in whatever his future holds… even if it means he now has to lose to the Griz now :lol:
HelenaHandBasket
Well-known member
RainierGriz said:
Is that really what it says?
mthoopsfan
Well-known member
Terrific article. It's nice to have a good writer who just lays out the story and facts, without bias or sensation. Foley is good.
I talked to several players, including defensive starters, at the time, and they said they were not aware of any team vote. And would have voted to have him on the team if they'd been asked. I assume the "answer" is that some amount of players told the coaches they didn't want him on the team.
Bobby and the coaches apparently made a calculated risk in their strategy, and it apparently didn't work out. It might not have worked out with Crews talking to the team either, or those who would talk to him. Every strategy doesn't work. Too bad.
The more I read, like Dane Olivers's comments, the more I believe Crews got screwed. The former player Corbin deserves a kick in the ass, in my view. I have not had any use for the most of the Kaimin for decades, so no surprise there. Maybe I will run across that writer sometime.
While difficult and painful for Crews and his family, I believe he has learned from this and will go on to have a great football career. I noticed that Oliver even mentioned early NFL potential. Good luck to Crews.
I talked to several players, including defensive starters, at the time, and they said they were not aware of any team vote. And would have voted to have him on the team if they'd been asked. I assume the "answer" is that some amount of players told the coaches they didn't want him on the team.
Bobby and the coaches apparently made a calculated risk in their strategy, and it apparently didn't work out. It might not have worked out with Crews talking to the team either, or those who would talk to him. Every strategy doesn't work. Too bad.
The more I read, like Dane Olivers's comments, the more I believe Crews got screwed. The former player Corbin deserves a kick in the ass, in my view. I have not had any use for the most of the Kaimin for decades, so no surprise there. Maybe I will run across that writer sometime.
While difficult and painful for Crews and his family, I believe he has learned from this and will go on to have a great football career. I noticed that Oliver even mentioned early NFL potential. Good luck to Crews.
Mistakes made by the staff or not, this is an example of what can happen with the extra scrutiny players and recruits are under. I believe Crews is sincere, however in todays day and age, the damage his recruitment could do to out of state recruits is huge. Take a step back and look at it this way:
Montana is arguably still recovering from the scandals on the early 2010s. Deserved or not, it’s an impediment to recruiting both students and student-athletes. Now add in the supercharged atmosphere in the country regarding racism. In this environment the team can ill-afford another scandal, especially adding the racist moniker to an already tarnished name. This could be catastrophic for out of state recruitment. Many players and students who might have been willing to look past Krakauer and his books and lawsuits may find it difficult to look past ANOTHER issue of national importance. UM seems to be on the wrong side of everything! Who would want to go there?
Like it or not, in this day and age, Montana can’t stand behind a kid that has this form of baggage. Even if he did all the things and had team support, the image that it displays is that racist comments/beliefs are tolerated. The second it came out in the media, this should have been over.
Regardless of where you fall on the political/Culture Wars spectrum, you have to understand that perception is 9/10ths of definition these days. UM can’t afford to be perceived to be either complicit or blasé with racism. Given that many out of state recruits tend to come from locations that skew more liberal/progressive, this image is deadly.
However, the staff handled this poorly and did both the university and Crews a disservice. They needed to formally say no early on or at least let him know that it wasn’t gonna work out. Instead they strung him along and made the staff look like a bunch of a$$holes. That part is what will be damaging from this. Ultimately, regardless of the baggage, it was a breach of trust. It will make kids and parents second guess what the coaches are telling them.
You can’t bring Crews’ baggage on board. Not in this day and age. But stringing him along is damaging too. That part could have EASILY been avoided. Instead, it’s 8 months later and we are still talking about it.
Definitely a “L” for the coaching staff here.
Montana is arguably still recovering from the scandals on the early 2010s. Deserved or not, it’s an impediment to recruiting both students and student-athletes. Now add in the supercharged atmosphere in the country regarding racism. In this environment the team can ill-afford another scandal, especially adding the racist moniker to an already tarnished name. This could be catastrophic for out of state recruitment. Many players and students who might have been willing to look past Krakauer and his books and lawsuits may find it difficult to look past ANOTHER issue of national importance. UM seems to be on the wrong side of everything! Who would want to go there?
Like it or not, in this day and age, Montana can’t stand behind a kid that has this form of baggage. Even if he did all the things and had team support, the image that it displays is that racist comments/beliefs are tolerated. The second it came out in the media, this should have been over.
Regardless of where you fall on the political/Culture Wars spectrum, you have to understand that perception is 9/10ths of definition these days. UM can’t afford to be perceived to be either complicit or blasé with racism. Given that many out of state recruits tend to come from locations that skew more liberal/progressive, this image is deadly.
However, the staff handled this poorly and did both the university and Crews a disservice. They needed to formally say no early on or at least let him know that it wasn’t gonna work out. Instead they strung him along and made the staff look like a bunch of a$$holes. That part is what will be damaging from this. Ultimately, regardless of the baggage, it was a breach of trust. It will make kids and parents second guess what the coaches are telling them.
You can’t bring Crews’ baggage on board. Not in this day and age. But stringing him along is damaging too. That part could have EASILY been avoided. Instead, it’s 8 months later and we are still talking about it.
Definitely a “L” for the coaching staff here.
HelenaHandBasket
Well-known member
PDXGrizzly said:
Disagree with this whole-heartedly.
HelenaHandBasket said:
Why? I’m not trying to be condescending or trollish. I genuinely want to know what your perspective is.
mtgrizfankb
Well-known member
Can’t stand being racism. If it made any current or future players uncomfortable having someone with a publicly racist past then this should not even be a question. Sure kids do dumb things. We all have and if it all was captured, very few would be exempt. But the things that were posted … I can’t pretend to know how it would make me feel with him being my teammate. If you listen to colter or anyone close to the Griz right now…culture is the single thing that makes this program tick. You can’t chance that on a player. You think every program you play wouldn’t pick up on something like this? You think future recruits for the next 10 years wouldn’t find this? They would and it’s hard to explain having him on the team.
He’s probably a great kid that made some awful mistakes and regrets it all…. But the internet is forever and the internet doesn’t forget
He’s probably a great kid that made some awful mistakes and regrets it all…. But the internet is forever and the internet doesn’t forget
garizzalies
Well-known member
Does this mean you will finally delete that screen shot you’ve kept and cherished all these years?wbtfg said:
SoldierGriz said:
I disagree. For many out of state kids and people of color, retaining Crews is the greater evil. It’s kind of a wicked problem; it’s not a good look either way. Somehow the staff made the correct decision (not retaining Crews) and did it so poorly that it looks like a worse decision. Ghosting him was kind of a dick move that will have repercussions down the line.
mtgrizfankb
Well-known member
wbtfg said:
That would be classic. The family complaining about the school trying to secretly keep him on the board and bring him on the team….then secretly being a grey shirt for MSU to join their team???
No idea if it’s true, just off this comment though. That would be ironic, no?
GrizTexas said:
Either way, it’s kind of like debating which part of a turd sandwich tastes better. In the end you are still eating shit.
- Status
