Free Republic

Alabama fired coach Mike Shula less than a year after the Crimson Tide finished a 10-2 season, according to a newspaper report. Shula told his assistant coaches late Sunday night that Alabama athletic director Mal Moore had dismissed him, The Tuscaloosa News reported on its Web site. An official announcement is expected Monday. Reached at home, Moore declined comment Monday morning but said he would hold a news conference later in the day. The Crimson Tide went 6-6 this season, finishing the season with three straight losses. Shula, a former Alabama quarterback, was winless in four tries against Auburn, his...

A column by Mike Downey of the Chicago Tribune got me thinking on this subject of web sites dedicated to firing coaches. Fire Joe Paterno.com, the subject of Downey's wrath, has backed down a bit from its "noble" cause, and the domain owner has reserved the domain name "Keep Joe Paterno.com." Too bad the board of directors at Penn State didn't reserve it first. My first foray into internet activism was Blue States for Bush. I got some hate e-mails, which I expected. The e-mails I got that really troubled me usually followed this line of logic. "Your site sucks...

<p>The Rev. Jesse Jackson, a longtime, high-profile civil rights activist who has criticized the University of Alabama for failing to hire a black football coach, will visit the Capitol City today to reiterate his protest.</p> <p>Jackson, founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, recently bashed the university, saying it used "smoke and mirrors" when hiring former Alabama quarterback Mike Shula over Sylvester Croom as head coach of the Crimson Tide.</p>

MONTGOMERY, Ala. -- The Rev. Jesse Jackson said Saturday he plans to protest Alabama's decision to hire Mike Shula at the state Capitol next week. Shula was hired as football coach Thursday over Green Bay assistant Sylvester Croom. Jackson said in a telephone interview from Chicago that he wants to draw attention to the selection of Shula, who is white, over Croom, who is black.