Tough day to be a Tar Heel

I'd like to interrupt the regularly scheduled Brady blog to bring you an editorial piece on UNC athletics.  But who am I kidding, Brady will manage to worm his way in somehow.

Some days you wake up, ready to face the world and ready to head to the office to tackle the day.  Some days you don't.  Know which one I felt today?  Fortunately, there is a beautiful thing called maternity leave which has afforded me the latter option.  But to my colleagues and friends in the athletic department who didn't have that luxury and had to face the day, I am sorry.  Last night, Chancellor Thorp announced that Butch Davis would be terminated as head football coach at UNC amidst the allegations of academic impropriety and improper benefits received by players.  The investigation started over a year ago and eight days before practice begins, the chancellor agreed that "the timing is terrible."  Yes, and this just in, the Pope is Catholic.  The Chancellor admitted that Coach Davis did not break his contract and that the athletic department might have to pay him as much as $2.7 million.  Speaking with my co-workers who have had to deal with the unhappy donors who generously open their wallets each year, it'll cost the department much more than that, as refund requests abound and future gifts are threatened.  And we are not just losing a football coach, but also an athletic director.  Dick Baddour announced this morning that he was stepping down.  It was hard to hear the pain in the voice of someone I like and respect who was clearly heartbroken about what has transpired the past year and past 24 hours.

I rarely envy those in positions of power and I like to give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to difficult decisions.  Still, this one is tough.  Eric and I received a nice gift from the Chancellor and his wife after Brady was born, and a few weeks ago, I turned to my loyal friend Google to get their home address to send a thank-you note.  Not having any luck, I decided to send it to him at his office in South Building.  For his and his family's sake, I hope others are as unsuccessful as I was in my search, because there will not be a lot of love letters coming his way in the upcoming weeks.

Today is one of those days where nobody comes out unscathed.  From the fans to student-athletes to Chapel Hill businesses...nobody wins.  Brady just woke up from his nap on my lap and he gave me a big, gummy, give-me-some-attention smile.  It's a tough day to be a Tar Heel, but lucky for me, it's a great day to be a mom.