During my 13 years as a faculty member at Kansas University, there have been times when I have been exceptionally proud of the university and other times when I have felt disappointed and let down. Never before, however, have I felt embarrassed about being at KU as I do now. I am embarrassed as a member of the community and as a member of the faculty. What is the source of my embarrassment? Football coach Mark Mangino’s behavior toward his players as evidenced by the startling video now available on YouTube and other Web sites. According to the count on one site I looked at, more than 150,000 people have seen this video.

I am not a great fan of college football as it is conducted today. I have said repeatedly that, to me, Division I football is highly exploitative of student-athletes for the purpose of providing entertainment for students and alumni and bringing in substantial income to universities. I have never believed that collegiate football as it is played at schools like KU instills ideals of collaboration and sportsmanship either in the players or in the spectators. But although I have been skeptical about college football, I have always held out hope that football teams, with the right coaches and the right spirit brought to the field, could be a positive factor on campus. In theory, football can increase alumni donations to universities for things other than sports; it can bring students together and heighten school spirit. It can provide educational opportunities for players who might not otherwise be able to attend college. But the video of coach Mangino’s recent on-field behavior has dashed any such hopes I might have had for football at KU. The fact that no senior member either of the KU administration or of the athletic department has publicly condemned coach Mangino’s actions leaves me no choice but to believe that the only thing important to those who are in power at KU is providing a profitable spectacle for the audience. Any thought of the players’ rights and dignities is absent.

What bothers me about the YouTube video is not that coach Mangino uses profanity. That’s unfortunate, but people say stupid things during times of stress. What I find so troubling about the video is the obvious violence and utter lack of respect for the player shown by the coach. Football players at KU are not paid professionals. They are students. They deserve to be treated like students. No normal faculty member could behave toward a student as coach Mangino did and avoid serious consequences. The KU Faculty and Unclassified Staff Manual deals with students’ rights and faculty responsibilities. Chapter 2.e, article 5 on page 60 of the manual lists as actions prohibited to faculty and staff:

“5. Behavior in the discharge of his/her duties that violates commonly accepted standards of professional ethics as defined, for example, in the statement of professional ethics adopted by the 52nd Annual Meeting of the AAUP, April, 1966 : Abusive or unprofessional treatment of students, faculty, or other members of the University fall within this category. Repeated infractions of one’s responsibilities, whether informal and/or formal admonitions, warnings or reprimands have occurred, are more serious than initial infractions of the same type. …”

Perhaps coach Mangino is neither a faculty member nor a member of the unclassified staff. I believe, however, that even if he isn’t, he ought to be subject to the same ethical standards as those who are. If he isn’t, and the university is willing to permit him to behave as he is shown to have done on the video, then all I can ask is, why? And if the answer is, indeed, that he is exempt from these ethical standards, then I must confess, my respect for KU as a place dedicated to teaching, research and service will be damaged beyond repair.