Hlas: Baggage awfully heavy to tote

This column was originally published in the Gazette in 2002

IOWA CITY - Unless he made his decision to remain at the University of Iowa completely on his own, basketball player Pierre Pierce is heeding some poor advice.

Anyone with Pierce's best interests at heart would have strongly suggested he find a new college home after he performs his 200 hours of community service in Johnson County after admitting to assault causing injury. They might even have helped him find a place to prove himself anew and resume the pursuit of his personal goals.

In a Thursday interview with Gazette, KCRG-TV and Daily Iowan reporters that those news operations had sought for several weeks,

Pierce made it clear he's staying at Iowa for the duration of his college career.

"To be a man you take responsibility, you stay here, you stay in school and don't run away from the situation," he said. "You become a solid person and a better person than you were before." Pierce is abiding by the agreement arrived at by himself and the victim. Piling on him - which I hope this column doesn't do - serves no useful purpose.

But in the meantime, all sorts of side issues have sprouted, not the least of which is questioning about the UI's role in the plea bargain.

Some people on campus are concerned because they feel Pierce has received special treatment as a prominent athlete. Pierce's attorney, Alfredo Parrish, made it clear Thursday he thinks the opposite is true, claiming this case and its aftermath would have been perceived a lot differently had the charged not been a black male.

Sex, race, celebrity, sports' place in our culture, people at odds within a university, how things do or don't work in law enforcement and the legal system - this is a story, folks. It may not drift out of Iowa until Pierce does.

That is why those close to him should have encouraged him to seek a fresh start elsewhere.

Hard feelings are widespread from the serious level (those who think the university's allowing Pierce to stay in school and on his team makes life harder and more confusing for victims of such acts) to the less solemn (those who say they have become less enamored with Hawkeye men's basketball).

That latter group does exist, by the way. The empty seats at several Iowa games in Carver-Hawkeye Arena games this season can partly be attributed to a lack of excitement about the team. But some fans are staying away because they are turned off by the

Pierce incident. And, maybe, by Coach Steve Alford's reactions to it.

Before Pierce's plea bargain was arranged, Alford said, "I totally believe that he's innocent in this situation. I've believed that from day one, and I still believe that."

Supporting his player was the right thing to do, of course.

Making that statement before the case was resolved, however, was unwise, perhaps arrogant, and possibly harmful.

Parrish said the people in Iowa City pushing for Pierce's expulsion have agendas that should be examined. He said Iowans outside Iowa City don't feel the same way about the issue as those inside it.

I'm not so sure. The last two months, I've heard quite a bit of unease and even disgust toward Iowa men's basketball from people who normally would support it.

There are people within the UI's athletics department who would be relieved if Pierce changed his mind and found a new college home far from Iowa City.

Unless I completely misread him, Alford isn't among them.

Pierce got the chance to stay here negotiated for him, and it's his right to make use that chance. But he sounds like he puts a lot of faith in Alford. The coach should have told the player that transferring out of Iowa would have been his best option.

Pierce is a talent, with NBA potential. He certainly has the capability to help lead the Hawkeyes to success from the first game next season to the end of his college career. But would extra victories be worth the scrutiny and aggravation that is sure to follow Pierce, his team and his school next season?

The university might have faced a whopper of a lawsuit had it cut Pierce loose. So, someone close and influential to him should have encouraged him to volunteer to begin again elsewhere. But that hasn't happened, which is a shame. Because there's a difference between running from a bad situation and trying to improve it.