Michigan men’s basketball coach Juwan Howard probably won’t see it this way, but he did sports radio (and sports television) a huge favor on Monday.
Several radio shows were off for the President’s Day holiday or weren’t working with full operations, as was the case with WFAN’s Carton & Roberts, whose show wasn’t simulcast on SNY Monday because the network let staff have the holiday off.
The first Monday since September with no football to talk about, the NBA coming off its All-Star Weekend (though Steph Curry provided a performance worth talking about in Sunday’s All-Star Game), and Major League Baseball still slogging through a lockout made for a potentially slow day in sports talk.
But Juwan Howard lashed out with his right hand (an open hand, so we’re not calling it a punch) at Wisconsin assistant coach Joe Krabbenhoft after getting into an argument with Badgers head coach Greg Gard during the post-game handshakes. That, and the skirmish it touched off between the Michigan and Wisconsin teams was a topic on virtually every sports radio show in the country on Monday.
CBS Sports Radio’s Damon Amendolara even talked about how great Andrew Catalon was calling the play-by-play of the brawl, setting up that Howard was upset with Gard about that timeout and was hanging back in the handshake line. Were the two going to exchange words? Oh, they’re arguing! There’s some jostling! AY-YO! Howard just threw a punch!
And if you didn’t talk about Howard, the length of suspension he deserved for his actions, and whether or not he might be fired, what else were you discussing during your show? There were so many directions this story could be taken. It even broke through into mainstream news.
The Howard incident was even a good enough topic to spur spinoff discussions, such as whether or not hosts would defend each other if they were involved in that kind of fracas. Had you ever witnessed one employee throw a punch or slap at another in your workplace? Who are some other coaches in sports that you’d like to see get in a tussle?
Was this the kind of story that college basketball needed to grasp the national discussion during a slow time on the sports calendar? Of course, a great game would’ve been better. But many fans are catching up to college hoops now that the NFL season is finished. Who are the top teams? The current AP poll has plenty of familiar names in its Top 25, including Gonzaga, Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky, Duke, and Villanova. Wait — Auburn is that good?
Hey, Michigan isn’t in that Top 25. Weren’t they expected to be good this season? Was Howard letting out some frustration on the Wisconsin coaching staff? Is the Michigan athletic department disappointed in the team’s performance this year? If so, could adminstrators use this as an excuse to dismiss Howard for cause? Would that really happen after the Wolverines advanced to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight last year?
But two coaches arguing in the post-game handshake line? One coach taking a swing at another? A melee breaking out on the court after the game had ended. A rugged tilt between Michigan and Wisconsin, and it didn’t take place on the football field?
The Howard incident could even become a two-day story for some shows. Most of Monday was concerned with speculation as to what could happen to Howard. But in the evening, the penalties were finally announced.
Michigan announced that Howard would be suspended for the remainder of the regular season, five games in total. The Big Ten fined him $40,000. Three players — two from Michigan, one from Wisconsin — received one-game suspensions. Gard was fined $10,000, but no suspension. Should he have been penalized at least one game?
How about Krabbenhoft, who sure looked like he escalated the situation in video of the fracas? No suspension there? And no punishment for the staffer who gave the ol’ crotch chop gesture? Wasn’t that guy representing the University of Wisconsin?
There’s certainly an opportunity to follow up on this for anyone who wants to stretch it out or needs a topic of discussion. Howard’s punch is the gift that keeps on giving. Well, for maybe another day or two. At least on a national level.
Maybe the coach can take some solace in that or even listen to some of those segments during the next two weeks while he presumably has some extra time available due to his five-game suspension. OK, probably not. But Howard provided a great service to sports media and it shouldn’t go unappreciated.
Ian Casselberry is a sports media columnist for BSM. He has previously written and edited for Awful Announcing, The Comeback, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation. You can find him on Twitter @iancass or reach him by email at iancass@gmail.com.
