The ethical obligation of college football coaches: A Blitz Podcast

On this week’s Saturday Blitz Podcast, we discuss the responsibility college football coaches have to speak out when it comes to social injustices.

In the wake of the latest incident of police brutality directly leading to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, many college football coaches, administrators, and players have come out in support of the mounting nationwide protests against the systemic racism that allows for black people to be killed by the police at a much higher rate than any other race.

Titans of the industry such as Dabo Swinney and Nick Saban have released public statements deriding the excessive force used by the Minneapolis police, the latest in a long line of similar incidents across the country. These incidents aren’t new — they are as old as the country itself — but the rise of social media and the immediate access to video to document such instances has brought the spotlight to an unfortunate and ugly side of policing.

In the vast majority of states, a football or basketball coach is the highest paid public employee in the state. They are often the most visible public figures in their states as well, which gives them a platform that the majority of Americans will never have.

With that being said, what responsibility, if any, do these coaches have when it comes to speaking out against social injustices? At what point are hollow press releases no longer enough to satiate growing unrest across the country?

That’s the main topic we discuss on this week’s Saturday Blitz Podcast.

Prior to jumping in with both feet on our main topic, we actually had some college football news to discuss, which was a welcomed change of pace as the coronavirus continues to rage on.

Former USC quarterback J.T. Daniels announced his transfer to Georgia; star Clemson wide receiver Justyn Ross is out for the 2020 season and his football future is in serious doubt after he was diagnosed with a congenital fusion in his spine; and former Auburn head football coach and athletic director Pat Dye passed away at 80, leading us to a discussion of his legacy and lasting impact on the Iron Bowl and college football as a whole.

The Saturday Blitz Podcast is part of the FanSided Radio Network at Spreaker. The show goes live every Wednesday morning. You can reach John Mitchell at @jlmitchell93 and Zach Bigalke at @zbigalke on Twitter.