Involved in a bit of a scandal at UW, Rick Neuheisel is now having a hard time getting a job.

“It has tarnished me and made it difficult for me to get an interview in the open marketplace,” Neuheisel told The Associated Press.

Oh… so Rick Neuheisel has gotten a small taste of what it’s like to be a black head coaching candidate, then. I’m sorry, but I can’t muster a lot of sympathy for a guy who had his shot, blew it by gambling on college athletics, and now has to wait his turn to get back in. Not when there are, what, 3 black head coaches in Division IA football?

I’m going to have a hard time feeling too bad for Rick Neuheisel. And his complaining, to me, just seems like whining. There are a ton of guys out there who want jobs and can’t get them, and they have clean records. They didn’t gamble on college sports, they didn’t lie about it, they don’t pose a public relations nightmare to any school that hires them, and they’re not in the media asking for sympathy. They just happen to be black. So suck it up, Rick, take a job as head coach of the Southeastern Milwaukee Fighting Woodchucks, prove you can run a clean program, and then maybe you can be Tyrone Willingham’s assistant for a while.

I have yet to hear real, sincere apologies from either Ben Wallace or Ron Artest regarding their roles in the brawl at the Palace… and somewhere, Stephen Jackson is still looking to fight someone. I’m picturing him walking through downtown Detroit, looking for people who were in the building that night, screaming, ‘YO, YOU WANNA FIGHT?”

But Jermaine O’Neal clearly grasps the situation, and is clearly very sorry… not only that it happened, but about his role in it. Give this a read. JO is a stand-up guy. I don’t feel like I’m in a position to be judging anyone else’s maturity, but… I will say that Jermaine O’Neal displays a maturity that seems to elude anyone else involved. He’s not running from any kind of responsibility.

I was initially against the judge ruling in his favor and shortening his suspension, but… this has changed my mind. I do believe that David Stern should have complete and unchallenged authority over suspensions in the NBA, and I’m not changing my mind about that… but O’Neil’s attitude, squeaky clean prior record, and activities in the community should count for something. I’m glad he’s back.

I don’t know if they do or not… and I really don’t care. What I find interesting about this AP article is this paragraph:

“Linebacker Ray Lewis failed to show up to his corner of the locker room and address the subject Wednesday. He didn’t talk to the media after Sunday’s loss to Pittsburgh, either, so his take on the situation is unclear.”

That is positively Sapp-esque. When things are going well, when he’s making a contribution to the team… Ray’s the first one to jump in front of a camera. But when Ray gets bitched around all day long, when he is absolutely incapable of wrapping up Jerome Bettis and taking him down, when Jerome puts Ray on his back and drags him four yards before going down… then Ray is nowhere to be found. Ray’s hiding somewhere. He’s gotta preserve that reputation… that’s what keeps him in Pro Bowls, that’s what keeps him on the cover of Madden.

Jason Whitlock gives his Top 10 NFL defensive players of all-time, and I think it’s a pretty solid list. People coule argue forever, and no list is going to be perfect, but… he makes pretty good cases for the guys he’s included.

I’m glad to see Junior Seau on there, I think he deserves it. He was an absolute game changer for a very long time… I fear that people will only remember his less-productive later years. Ray Lewis at #10, I’m not sure about, but… at least it’s no higher than #10. I’m sure there are a lot of people who buy into the hype that would have him ranked higher. He was dominant for a while, sure… but he’s not anymore, and if he never regains that form, then… I don’t think that’s enough of a career to justify inclusion on this list. I think Rod Woodson could make a strong list for inclusion ahead of Ray Ray.

Deion’s at #7… and as a defensive player, that’s probably about right. But if you were to include his overall impact on games, including special teams… his ability to take over a game is matched by few, if any, on either side of the ball. The argument about him not being a tackler is absurd… why isn’t covering enough? No one would jump Randy White’s shit for not being able to cover Jerry Rice, so why hold it against Deion that he wasn’t a run-stopper? When he was on the field, he made things far more complicated for other offenses. Deion won games by himself.

Mike Singletary’s #4, Joe Greene’s #3, Lawrence Taylor’s #2, and Reggie White’s #1.