The news out of Washington State sounded more than vaguely familiar.
A linebacker on the football team had been arrested on suspicion of robbery and assault. There was no official word on his playing status for this weekend.
“Anything we do with that will be handled internally,” Coach Mike Leach told reporters during a Tuesday morning teleconference. “I mean, everybody’s innocent until proven guilty.”
That might be true in a court of law, but whenever a college football player is so much as suspected of breaking the law, universities face a decision.
Accusations can trigger strong emotions and the public often wants immediate action.