Allen Pinkett: Notre Dame Needs 'Criminals' To Be Successful
(WSCR) Notre Dame has had its fair share of off-the-field incidents over the past few seasons.
But for Fighting Irish radio analyst and former NFLer Allen Pinkett, he's not concerned with off-the-field issues - as long as the person involved is a good enough football player.
"I've always felt like, to have a successful team, you gotta have a few bad citizens on the team," Pinkett told The McNeil and Spiegel Show. "I mean, that's how Ohio State used to win all the time. They would have two or three guys that were criminals. That just adds to the chemistry of the team. I think Notre Dame is growing because maybe they have some guys that are doing something worthy of a suspension, which creates edge on the football team. You can't have a football team full of choir boys. You get your butt kicked if you have a team full of choir boys. You gotta have a little bit of edge, but the coach has to be the dictator and ultimate ruler."
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So which type of criminal does Pinkett want in South Bend?
"I don't want any mass murders or rapists," Pinkett said. "I want guys that maybe get caught drinking that are underage, or guys that maybe got arrested because they got in a fight at a bar, or guys that are willing to cuss in public and don't mind the repercussions of it. That's the type of criminal I'm talking about."
When given a chance to clarify his comments, Pinkett wasn't backing down.
"I absolutely meant that," he said. "Chemistry is so important on a football team. You have to have a couple of bad guys that sorta teeter on that edge to add to the flavor of the guys that are going to always do right. ... You look at the teams that have one in the past. They always have a couple of criminals.
Heading into the 2012 season, Notre Dame's Tommy Rees and linebacker Carlo Calabrese have been suspended for the season opener for their roles in a skirmish with police following an off-campus party in May. More recently, running back Cierre Wood and defensive end Justin Utupo have been suspended for the first two games of the season.
