Found this in the SI Vault. October 6, 1986. We followed one great coach with another.
I'm sure telling the players he wouldn't recruit them again got them real fired up to play for the guy on Saturday.
AT WITS' END
With two months still left in the season, two coaches already have determined that their players are the pits. Iowa State boss Jim Criner is enraged over off-field problems. The NCAA is investigating Cyclone recruiting. In addition, two Iowa State players have been charged with passing bad checks; others are under investigation in connection with a burglary at the home of an assistant coach. Last week Criner booted two starters, split end Hughes Suffren and defensive end Marques Rodgers, off the squad for having missed practice since Sept. 17. Another first-stringer, cornerback Milon Pitts, was suspended for last week's Wichita State game. He had spent two days in jail after having pleaded guilty to the assault of another student. "If I knew we would have players causing these kinds of problems," says Criner, "I don't think I'd have gone into coaching."
Jim Walden of Washington State feels the same way. Last week he yelled, "I've never had a bunch of kids in my life who went right in the tank after a victory the way this team did. I wouldn't even recruit these players again." Walden was upset because after beating UNLV 34-14, the Cougars were beaten by San Jose State 20-13 and Cal 31-21. Of the Cal loss, Walden said, "I don't mind getting run over by a tank, but we got run over by a damn moped." So, Walden got tough, ordering full-scale scrimmages. Result: The Cougars' leading ball-carrier, Steve Broussard, suffered a shoulder separation and is out indefinitely. Too bad, said Walden: "This is a game played by very tough people. It's not a parlor game. It's getting your face knocked off or knocking somebody else's off." It all worked. Sort of. On Saturday Washington State tied Arizona State 21-21.
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