When the clock strikes 7:00 PM Tuesday evening in barley-fueled Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Connecticut head coach Jim Calhoun will finally have at his disposal the final cog necessary to make his Huskies not only the 2006 Final Four favorite, but, arguably, the most balanced NCAA hoops squad since John Wooden's UCLA Bruins.
In honor of this momentous occasion, I've assembled a list of some of Coach Calhoun's most famous players (whether former or current) and staff members that have had some sort of run-in with Connecticut's finest protectors of the peace. However, before the names of the not-so-innocent are re-released, some caveats must be made to appropriately accompany this essay.
First, I've limited the roster to individuals that have been under Coach Calhoun's supervision since 1990. Given the fact that I do not have free reign to a newspaper library, this is the only manageable way to construct any type of police blott... err, cataloguing of fine "student-athletes" and "educators."
The second caveat is that former players or staff members that may have committed arrestable acts of stupidity (such as Johnnie Selvie) following their time in Storrs are not considered. At some point, ultimate accountability cannot fall at the feet of the head of the hierarchy of responsibility.
Finally, I know that Syracuse does not have a spotless record in terms of player behavior. Everyone knows that DeShuan Williams is one of the ten worst human beings on the planet and that the Orange was put on probation back in 1996. However, the purpose of this essay is not to wave an angry finger of comparative institutional control. Neither is it to serve as a vehicle for depression or jealously. Rather, the sole function of this essay is to highlight the notion that the cast of characters is oftentimes not as good as the play itself.
2005: A.J. Price
· Stole four laptop computers in June 2005
2005: Marcus Williams
· Stole four laptop computers in June 2005
2005: Antonio Kellogg
· Charged with possession of less than four ounces of marijuana
· Charged with criminal intent to assault a police officer, criminal trespass, and interfering with an officer
2004: Clyde Vaughan
· Charged with patronizing a prostitute and interfering with an officer
2003: Ben Gordon
· Charged with third-degree assault and disorderly conduct, both misdemeanors
2003: Rashard Anderson
· Threatening and breach of peace
2001: Marcus Cox
· Charged with one count of marijuana possession
2000: Tony Robertson
· Accused of scheming to swap tickets for boots at the Timberland Stores at Westfarms Mall. No charges were filed after a four-week investigation.
1999: Khalid El-Amin
· Charged with possession less than four ounces of marijuana after his arrest in Hartford’s North End
1998: Antric Klaiber
· Charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, seat belt violation
· Charged with shoplifting
1998: Doug Wrenn
· Charged with shoplifting $85 sneakers from Bob’s of Hamden
· Cited for disturbance outside of a bar
· Arrested on breach-of-peace charges
1994: Rudy Johnson
· Charged with breach of peace in an incident involving Connecticut women’s basketball player Sue Mayo
1993: Brian Fair
· Charged with shoplifting
1990: Murray Williams
· Charged with driving while intoxicated
Wasn't there some UCONN assistant who had an incident with a hooker and blow-jobs or am I just making this up?
On an unrelated SU basketball note... do you think that SU fans could borrow the "STOP" sign the Alabama fans used to stop Forrest Gump from running, so that maybe Gerry Mac will stop shooting?
Not making it up, Davey. That's actually Clyde Vaughan (listed above). He was busted in Willimantic trying to pick up a hooker. He resigned from the staff after his antics.
(By the way, Willimantic was named by the New York Times as "Heroin Town." I don't know what that has to do with anything, but I think it's funny. Plus, Willimantic is where those UCONN football players decided to start shooting out windows with a BB Gun. Dopes.)
Speaking of Gerry, has there ever been a time on this planet when people wanted Gerry to stop shooting and McCroskey and Nichols to shoot more? Yiiiiiiiiiiikes.
I hope to have completed that Gerry McNamara essay by the end of this week.