Calipari's History Could Make for a Gloomy Forecast

College basketball is quickly going the way of so many other big time sports.

What used to be a game of integrity and tradition has turned into a dog eat dog, ends justify the means way of doing things.

And why not? It is a business after all. It's all about making money.

In the last two years, some major college basketball programs have been at the center of allegations of wrong doing or just plain stupidity.

At times, the blame is placed on someone, and sometimes that person will actually be the one who deserves to take the heat. Unfortunately, those not held responsible still leave a wake of destruction on their way out the door.

Case in point: Kelvin Sampson and Indiana.

Indiana was always a straight and narrow program even during the highly volatile Bob Knight era.

Not once in my memory, though, were they ever suspected of wrongdoing under Knight.

Even under his successor, Indiana, while not as successful, never faced the wrath of the NCAA for wrongdoing.

That was until Sampson came to town with the cloud of suspicion he brought from Oklahoma. The cloud was warranted and it didn't take a meteorologist to forecast the torrential downpour that was to come in Bloomington.

And thus, shortly after his arrival, he was not-so-kindly asked to leave. And much like the tornadoes he was accustomed to while in Oklahoma, he left one of college basketball's most proud and respected programs in ruins.

Sampson wasn't the first, but to think of Indiana being as bad as they were this year would have been unthinkable in the days of Knight.

Recently, other college programs not as honored as Indiana have come under fire as well.

The reason? The moral ambiguity of the coaching staffs and the athletic departments.

First there was the news that Tim Floyd at USC had given star recruit and player O.J. Mayo money.

There's nothing new with that type of allegation, but it's something the up-and-coming Trojans would have loved to avoid. With the matter under investigation, it is still too early to determine the fate of Floyd or the USC program.

Now there is word that Derrick Rose or another one-and-done player at the University of Memphis who has not officially been named, had someone take his SAT for him in high school.

My first thought was if it was Rose, and he barely got in to begin with, perhaps he should have picked a smarter friend.

Then I think seriously and wonder, how did this happen?

John Calipari and Kentucky are saying the new UK coach is in the clear. Calipari is pulling another Sergeant Shultz with his "I know nothing" routine.

The same routine he pulled at UMass before he got out of dodge just before the menusha hit the fan. And much like that time, he is leaving someone else to clean up the mess.

Did Calipari know about either issue?

Who knows but him? But what is certain is that the man in charge of the program that faces these significant violations must be held responsible to some extent.

If you are the head of the program and you don't know what your people are doing, then something isn't right.

And if you are the Memphis athletic department, shouldn't you be more cautious of this type of thing, especially with a coach who has a history of being involved in improprieties elsewhere? 

For Indiana, lesson learned. But as for Memphis, at this point you can only feel so sorry for them.

These three men, as I scarcely consider them coaches, are examples of how the moral compass of college basketball is losing its magnetic pull to the north.

Coaches are to be respected. They run clean programs with no violations. They take care of the kids, who along with their parents, entrust so much in them.

Those that don't jump ship whenever they feel bored or are seeking a bigger pay day.

They certainly don't kindly or unkindly—who really knows yet—tell kids who committed to an institution that their services will no longer be needed because he has someone better coming in.

In this regard, perhaps the players feel they will be better off getting a chance to play rather than sit because they don't fit the new coaches system.

But if you were at least good enough to warrant attention from a historic program like Kentucky, isn't it a bitter pill to swallow to be told, whether directly or indirectly, that you aren't good enough anymore?

Has Calipari done anything wrong?

Nothing has been proven yet, but his actions do not resemble those of an honorable coach. He has potentially ruined two minor programs.

UMass had to vacate its Final Four run and hasn't even come close to that level since.

Memphis is staring at the real possibility of seeing the same done to its record setting season in 2007. They most certainly will not be making any noise anytime soon.

Now Calipari is off to Kentucky, one of the most hallowed institutions in college basketball.

Kentucky is taking in the man with open arms, but I can't help but think back to Indiana and Sampson without hearing Yogi Berra saying it is like deja vu all over again.

The ends-justify-the-means philosophy wins out again. If all this passes without a mark on Calipari, I won't be surprised.

Memphis most certainly will feel the sting from what is to come.

Kentucky, on the other hand, best keep their umbrellas handy, because if history repeats itself, as it often does, they might just get wet.