Instead, the NCAA should have denied Duke's request by citing one of its favorite phrases about "a lack of institutional control."
School officials bobbled the entire Duke incident from the beginning, but they refuse to take any blame.
Everyone else involved seems to have been punished -- from the players to the alleged victim. Their lives have changed forever. Former Duke coach Mike Pressler was fired, and is now the head coach at Division II Bryant.
Even former Durham County district attorney Mike Nifong has been disbarred for allegedly manipulating and fabricating evidence.
But aren't we forgetting someone? How about Duke president Richard Brodhead? Wasn't he the guy who overreacted and tried to win the public relations game back in 2006 when he canceled the season after eight games? Didn't he play a major part in pressuring Press- ler to leave town?
But Brodhead and his administration have basically washed their hands of the matter despite throwing the team under the bus.
To make amends, Brodhead cozied up to the other Atlantic Coast Conference presidents to see whether they would approve the extra year of eligibility. Once he got approval, he went a step further to the NCAA.
It was a bold move and so arrogant, and so Duke. Instead of standing up and admitting his mistakes, Brodhead has tried to absolve himself and his administration of any wrongdoing.
The words "I'm sorry" don't appear to be in his vocabulary.
Maybe, just maybe, that's all people want to hear instead of trying to buy them out as the university did in a settlement with Pressler, or trying to gain backroom favors as Duke did with the NCAA to avoid more litigation.
It's just hard to root for a school with such a snobby, better-than-you attitude. It seems everyone has to suffer the consequences. This time, it's Division I college lacrosse. It's a Loyola, a Dartmouth, a Georgetown.
It's unfair.
mike.preston@baltsun.com
