I am in full agreement with this. The umbrage of people on both sides of the argument is silly.
Of course, it is possible that NU and Chris Collins have built a solid program through a general practice of getting the right kinds of players, promoting strong values and trying to do things the right way--AND that they also make mistakes.
Anyone who tries to claim that NU is without fault is kidding themselves. Meanwhile, anyone who tries to lump NU into the same bucket as programs with consistent records of shady practices or a serious lack of institutional control is being obtuse.
As someone who runs a business and earnestly strives to do things the right way, I fully acknowledge there are situations I/we could have handled better and also some flat out mistakes that I/we have made over the years--things that could look ugly taken in isolation. But you learn from those mistakes and try to do better moving forward--and your mistakes don't negate your achievements. Nobody is perfect, no organization is perfect. This is a fact of life.
It doesn't have to be that either: a) NU/CC are perfect and Vasser was totally unreasonable OR b) NU has become a shady program and our recent achievements mean nothing.
Maybe there will be consequences with the NCAA for the handling of this situation, and maybe there should be. But heads don't have to roll. These allegations are not the worst thing in the world, and I see no real pattern as Vasser is the only CC recruit to drop/be dropped from the team. The staff and NU will learn from this and continue to move forward trying to do things the right way with strong values, smart kids and an increasingly competitive environment. And rest assured that more mistakes will be made as Northwestern Basketball becomes a more competitive environment. Again, that's life...and certainly no reason to turn my back on my favorite team.
