I know a lot of people here thought I was insane for what I was saying yesterday and the concern I had for what the athletic department had done, including scoff from our beloved insiders. I do not for one minute regret the doubt and concern I had. A situation this serious does not deserve all benefit of the doubt. I needed to hear the exact right things from the athletic department to feel ok with their part in this situation.
And tonight I heard just about everything I wanted to hear. Josh did a fantastic job. The way he laid out his process, what he had access to, what he didn’t have access to, what he knew, when he knew it, what he was allowed to do vs what he was limited from doing, it was a very solid job. More than anything I wanted to know to what extent they tried to get to the bottom of things since this issue first arose. It is clear they had a sound process and they went through it to the extent that they could given the information they had. That’s what I wanted to hear. Note, that is not what some here were saying, implying he had no obligation to do anything until it became official: “well there was no criminal charge, so what was he supposed to do?” Clearly the university had a more proactive approach than that, and that’s what I wanted to hear.
Should I have trusted him more? Well he’s never given us reason to doubt him. I still maintain I was right to demand answers given the grave circumstances. But he knocked it out of the park and proved why he is the greatest thing to happen to the university in my lifetime.
As for TJ, the little information that has come out in the last 24 hours about what happened seem to really paint a better picture for him than what the headline of being charged with rape implies. I am sure the true events most likely lie in the gray area spectrum that make these situations impossible to deal with. But it sure sounds like this is much closer to a consensual act that fell out in a bad way after the fact, rather than the other end of the spectrum where truly heinous things occur. I have a great amount of optimism that he is vindicated. I hope he is. Of course, if he did do something wrong, I solemnly hope he faces the consequences. But hopefully this is something that he can prove his innocence and recover his life.
As for basketball, I am probably too hopeful that the 3 person panel reinstated him. They are probably too cautious to do so. But if they do, it should be because they have plenty of reason to believe he is innocent. If that’s the case I will very much cheer him on throughout the rest of the season and hope our collective faith in him is proven to not be in vain. I also hope the team can find a way to rally together and still be the best team they can be. The way this has tainted my enjoyment of the season cannot compare to what his teammates must be feeling.
Go Illini.
Can you imagine Mike Thomas at the helm this evening?
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