Back in '76, it was still fine for coaches to "not know anything".
An HBO doc on UCLA discusses Sam Gilbert (noted outside supporter- ahem), and shows interview where Wooden simply says..."I didnt want to know anything about what he was doing". Of Course he didnt,...back then deniability was a reasonable defense.
Of course..I am not analogizing this here to boosters .....but simply noting that until recent years this was generally the accepted way coaches insulated themselves from liability for almost anything but wins and losses...total blinders and isolation. Even if they were told/suspected...."they never really knew" They got away with that because we let them
Thats all changing as in this era.....we are opening up liability/responsibility for both the seen and the unseen. Those in positions of responsibility are more often held responsible.....including to make sure "they know", and that they investigate/act. Thats good
JoePa coached in this older era, and continued to this new era. That he kept up the older era's "blinders" shouldnt be surprising, but he and his legacy may be quite reasonably tarnished for continued his head in the sand approach. History should always be a harsher judge as it should report truth and dispel myth.
On the Catholic issue, I thought the movie "Spotlight" nailed it. That abuses occurred multiple times, wasnt the just the story...as the editor (Liv Shrieber ?)instructed....that everyone higher up knew of it and there was a systematic effort to bury and not reveal the issue was the real story.
Its not the crimes, but the response of those responsible for enforcement that often becomes the more serious issue
