Why not Walker?

Let me get this straight. DeWayne Walker can’t get a job as a head coach and the majority of Times readers think it’s because he hasn’t earned a spot.

If only he could get fired from two jobs under a cloud of controversy, the UCLA job would have been his. Maybe he could’ve led an uber-talented offense through an under-achieving season and he’d be at Washington. Or if he could have coached Notre Dame through years of big wins over Air Force and none over a ranked team, he would be getting a vote of confidence.

Now I’m not trying to suggest that the above-mentioned jobs were given or retained unfairly. However, I am saying that with Walker’s resume, he has earned a shot at a major-college program. No, not San Diego State, but a major-college program. And I am saying, unequivocally, that the reason he hasn’t gotten an opportunity is in large part because of his race.

But it’s not blatant racism. It’s something much more subtle and less egregious. It lies in our subconscious and it’s possibly a result of simple social programming. Minority coaches simply don’t engender the confidence of university presidents and fans the way their white counterparts do. It’s that thing that makes the stoic Jim Tressel seem Landry-esque, and makes Karl Dorrell Karl Dullard.

Brian Thompson

Signal Hill