The Jerry Baldwin Saga: 1998-2020

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Originally Posted by Just1More

Most hard working people won't gross $2 million in a lifetime. We are setting examples in our society that being a victim is the most monetarily profitable profession one can aspire to achieve.

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J.1.M., you have nailed it on the button. Today, I feel violated by the system and hurt deeply for the good fans at UL rendered helpless by that same inept system. However, I have recently read a book by an honorable African-American by the name of James McWhorter, linguistics professor at Cal-Berkley. The name of the book is "Losing the Race". and he courageously looks at his own heritage and his own culture and how it has imploded. The key word he uses is "victimology." See the synopsis below; it is a worthy read for people that aspire to want to understand and solve rather than sue the problems.

Are African-Americans using past racial injustices as an excuse for not working to take advantage of contemporary opportunities? McWhorter, a linguistics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, thinks he has the answers to this question and others and he points the finger directly at the black community. Starting with the premise that white racism is no longer the threat it once was, McWhorter singles out "the cult of victimology" and the glorification of white racism as a major cause for several social crises afflicting African-Americans. Offering little that has not been said previously by conservatives like Pat Buchanan and Shelby Steele, McWhorter uses a cookie-cutter approach to explain away recent race pressure points such as the arson directed against black churches, the high proportion of black inmates in America's prisons, the practice of racial profiling and police brutality. In each case, he finds fault with the African-American community's interpretation of these situations, accusing African-Americans of hypersensitivity to racial bias and a reluctance to relinquish the past. Victimology, as well as separatism, in his words, "gives failure, lack of effort and criminality a tacit stamp of approval." Like many of the new black conservatives, McWhorter spends much time going after liberal columnists and social critics, attacking both their intent and message. Even his closing segment "How Can We Save the African-American Race?"sounds more like a well-worn campaign speech than a call to initiate a dialogue on race in the African-American community and the nation.

"Why is it that the "race" card is always played and impugns the integrity of the good African-American people wanting to make a true mark in this world?" Does anyone ever remember Ty Winningham suing Notre Dame when he was released for "lack of performance?" Somehow, I don't think this happened.


When UL takes the proactive step to courageously hire the first African-American coach in the Sun Belt Conference, buys out his final year on his contract, and then gets raked over the coals for holding to the higher ideals of Dr. Martin Luther King and then gets "vandalized" to the tune of 2 MILLION DOLLARS - - something is horribly, horribly wrong!!

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Originally Posted by geo_cajun

_ If we fire Bustle after this year would it be because he is white? Clearly we have a track record of racism at UL, as one of the first Universities in the south to integrate, letting talented minority players play their position (read: Brian Mitchell at QB when LSU wouldn't let him play QB b/c he is black), and of course we do have several black head coaches on staff now. This ruling slanders the university's good name as a respectable university who does not discriminate, but rather tries its best to as indiscriminate as possible. This whole thing makes me sick.
Also, do we have the worst lawyers in the world?? How are they letting these things go on? Let's grow some damn balls and be proactive rather than reactive! _

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Good point. Beryl Shipley was the first coach to recruit blacks in basketball and LSU was lily white. When Beryl started kicking butt, seems the other schools thought it may be a good idea too.

When we got as high as # 4 in the polls when Bo Lamar was here, the state went ballistic and found ways to shut us down. I'm sure there were violations but I've heard stories of some of the goings on at Losing State University that would make your hairs stand on end, and they for the most part have gotten away with it.

I'm real disappointed that our outgoing governor has never stood up for our area like she should have. Everyone in power in this state bows down to whatever will help themselves. Politics as usual.

Back to this though, anyone is nuts if they think race played a part in Baldwin's firing.

Of all the places I've lived and visited, cajun country is the least racial I've ever seen and that because the cajuns know their heritage and how they were banned from Nova Scotia and are tolerant and understanding of others. That more than anything makes me proud to be a coonass.

We made ESPN College FB Headlines:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3070227

I am disgusted by this. Shame on the citizens of Baton Rouge for delivering such a ridiculous verdict. If this had been tried in Lafayette, he would not have received a dime. Damn shame that this is taking up our time on the day before Homecoming.

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Originally Posted by bjc6267

_ We made ESPN College FB Headlines:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3070227

I am disgusted by this. Shame on the citizens of Baton Rouge for delivering such a ridiculous verdict. If this had been tried in Lafayette, he would not have received a dime. Damn shame that this is taking up our time on the day before Homecoming. _

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Check out the comments at the bottom.....

I'm thinking about it. Let's get us a class-action suit going on here.

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Originally Posted by DaddyCajun

_ Baldwin is!!!!!! A preacher that(not that there was ANY wrong doing) teaches his congregation to NOT turn the other cheek!!! What a holy man!!!

Baton Rouge where Baldwin coached and case was held!
Baton Rouge where Southern and LSU have been at it for years(the great divide)!!
Baton Rouge the great UL sayers, USL callers, Lafayette turn there noses to us HATERS(not all but they are out there in numbers)

For those who served on a jury before, it is ALL too common for there to be a few strong personalities. If these personalities can get the just of either of the attourneys then they can swing the others in the jury.

Oates if he does not win the appeal would never take on a case for me I can assure you of this.

DaddyCajun

This WILL be appealed, and there will be NO Jury who can be swayed by emotion or feelings. _

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I agree with most of what has been said about Baldwin. However it seems upon reading the reports from several years ago that Authement and Schexnayder shot themselves in the foot with stupid statements.

Especially Authement saying that it was going to be rough for him. He shouldn't have said a damn thing like that. It was a lawsuit waiting to happen from the minute he was hired.

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Originally Posted by BirdofParadise

_ Actually, he is in Ruston.....which is almost Arkansas. _

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Hey!!! Don't pick on us North Louisiana people!!! We don't want him either!

The biggest travesty in this whole thing is that he is a preacher. A preacher who has now demonstrated that you should hold a grudge, be "out to get" those whom you think wrong you, stab your friends in the back (yes, a lot of people in the athletic department and at the university were still friends with Baldwin after he left), and look out for no one but number one. What a Christian example! I can't believe there are any people who would be willing to have him as their spritual leader and pastor of their church. What a shame!

im in, what say about 2 million bucks worth of emotional distress

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Originally Posted by Jason

_ Check out the comments at the bottom..... _

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LOL...this one's my favorite!!!

Quote: If Baldwin is such a "good" coach .... Why isn't he coaching someplace else ? .... Oh Wait .... The Lord must have called him ! .... Yeah, called him ".... a bad coach."

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Originally Posted by Cowboy Up

_ J.1.M., you have nailed it on the button. Today, I feel violated by the system and hurt deeply for the good fans at UL rendered helpless by that same inept system. However, I have recently read a book by an honorable African-American by the name of James McWhorter, linguistics professor at Cal-Berkley. The name of the book is "Losing the Race". and he courageously looks at his own heritage and his own culture and how it has imploded. The key word he uses is "victimology." See the synopsis below; it is a worthy read for people that aspire to want to understand and solve rather than sue the problems.

Are African-Americans using past racial injustices as an excuse for not working to take advantage of contemporary opportunities? McWhorter, a linguistics professor at the University of California, Berkeley, thinks he has the answers to this question and others and he points the finger directly at the black community. Starting with the premise that white racism is no longer the threat it once was, McWhorter singles out "the cult of victimology" and the glorification of white racism as a major cause for several social crises afflicting African-Americans. Offering little that has not been said previously by conservatives like Pat Buchanan and Shelby Steele, McWhorter uses a cookie-cutter approach to explain away recent race pressure points such as the arson directed against black churches, the high proportion of black inmates in America's prisons, the practice of racial profiling and police brutality. In each case, he finds fault with the African-American community's interpretation of these situations, accusing African-Americans of hypersensitivity to racial bias and a reluctance to relinquish the past. Victimology, as well as separatism, in his words, "gives failure, lack of effort and criminality a tacit stamp of approval." Like many of the new black conservatives, McWhorter spends much time going after liberal columnists and social critics, attacking both their intent and message. Even his closing segment "How Can We Save the African-American Race?"sounds more like a well-worn campaign speech than a call to initiate a dialogue on race in the African-American community and the nation.

"Why is it that the "race" card is always played and impugns the integrity of the good African-American people wanting to make a true mark in this world?" Does anyone ever remember Ty Winningham suing Notre Dame when he was released for "lack of performance?" Somehow, I don't think this happened.


When UL takes the proactive step to courageously hire the first African-American coach in the Sun Belt Conference, buys out his final year on his contract, and then gets raked over the coals for holding to the higher ideals of Dr. Martin Luther King and then gets "vandalized" to the tune of 2 MILLION DOLLARS - - something is horribly, horribly wrong!! _

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Notre Dame is getting there's TENFOLD, because Weis is getting his butt whipped, while Washington under Willingham is on the rise.

Thanks for making my point! At least Winningham was given the opportunity to go somewhere else as a head coach because he has the tools, not because he is an African American head coach.

Who is ever going to hire Baldwin again? No one, and he has 2 million dollars in hand!!

HMMNNN?

And think of all of the potential fans that are out there...all of the people in the Lafayette area who aren't UL fans should sue for future fan potential!!!

Or maybe the school should sue for all of the fans lost and future fan potential that we lost from Baldwin burrying our program! Sue for $2 million and use the money to buy season tickets to give away since we can't get fans to pay to come to the games anymore.

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Originally Posted by RaginCajunPie

And think of all of the potential fans that are out there...all of the people in the Lafayette area who aren't UL fans should sue for future fan potential!!!

Or maybe the school should sue for all of the fans lost and future fan potential that we lost from Baldwin burrying our program! Sue for $2 million and use the money to buy season tickets to give away since we can't get fans to pay to come to the games anymore.

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I like your style. Counter-sue for revenue lost due to insufficient fan interest because of Baldwin's c.r.a.p.p.y job.

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Originally Posted by geo_cajun

If we fire Bustle after this year would it be because he is white? Clearly we have a track record of racism at UL, as one of the first Universities in the south to integrate, letting talented minority players play their position (read: Brian Mitchell at QB when LSU wouldn't let him play QB b/c he is black), and of course we do have several black head coaches on staff now. This ruling slanders the university's good name as a respectable university who does not discriminate, but rather tries its best to as indiscriminate as possible. This whole thing makes me sick.
Also, do we have the worst lawyers in the world?? How are they letting these things go on? Let's grow some damn balls and be proactive rather than reactive!

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So we play role model to Louisiana and probably the entire Deep South in accepting African-American students, without incident and when it was the social norm not to, and we're the racists. Hmmmmm. Interesting.

How many jobs has Baldwin applied for and been turned down? How much income did he miss out on? What were the schools?

In my opinion Jerry Baldwin came to UL a bitter man with a smile.

While at LSU he was an assistant head coach from 1993-95 that was demoted to defensive coordinator that was demoted to defensive ends coach.

imo Baldwin could not make the transition from a slush fund budget at LSU to a skin tight budget at UL

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Originally Posted by NewsCopy

Baldwin, the university’s first black head football coach, said he was just beginning to turn around the school’s football program.

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Only if you judge Baldwin with Baldwin himself being the grading curve.

He did have 3 wins in his last year which matched his first 2 years combined.

Wow factor: The 3 teams Baldwin beat in his "turn around" year had a total of 6 wins between them.

How many coaching jobs did Baldwin apply for?

How many 6-27 (or similar record) head coaches in NCAA history have gone straight to another head coaching job?

Since when does every coach get new equiptment?

If a coach gets new equiptment in 1998 after several years of using the same eqiptment, then gets fired, what is the life expectancy of his equiptment? Do you change the equiptment for every new coach, or do you let regular life expectancy run its course?

I left the above comment somewhere in this ESPN <a href="http://myespn.go.com/s/conversations/show/story/3070227" target="_blank">Link</a>

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<table bgcolor=#eaeaea> <td> <font color=#000000> <blockquote> <p align=justify>
<b>UL responds </b>

"University of Louisiana at Lafayette is deeply disappointed in the jury’s verdict in the Jerry Baldwin lawsuit. The university has a long history of not only supporting diversity, but of leadership in bringing diversity to its university and collegiate athletics.

The reason Coach Baldwin was terminated was his lack of success on the football field. The team won 6 games and lost 27 in three football seasons under Coach Baldwin, which is the lowest winning percentage in over 100 years of Ragin’ Cajuns football history.

As a result, attendance at home games plummeted and the university concluded that Coach Baldwin could not turn the program around. Coach Baldwin was fired for these reasons and not because of the color of his skin.

As is customary with collegiate coaching contracts, the contract with Coach Baldwin allowed the university to remove him as Head Football Coach at any time. In light of Coach Baldwin’s lack of success on the football field, UL Lafayette chose to replace him for the benefit of the university and its football program. The university paid out Coach Baldwin’s contract in full.

The university is pleased that the jury recognized that Coach Baldwin was not terminated because of his race. However, it is disappointed in the conclusion that race played some part in the decision. The law and the evidence at trial do not support this conclusion, and the university will vigorously challenge it, including an appeal if necessary."

</td> </table>

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This is public info. If you would like to drop Mr. Baldwin a little note, he can be reached at www.jlbaldwin@nlwm.org

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Originally Posted by Cowboy Up

... and he has 2 million dollars in hand!!

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Not quite! He only has it on paper so far, subject to appeals. We'll see if he ever gets his hands on a dime. My bet is he never sees anything close to $2M.

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Originally Posted by DaddyCajun

_ Baldwin is!!!!!! A preacher that(not that there was ANY wrong doing) teaches his congregation to NOT turn the other cheek!!! What a holy man!!!

Baton Rouge where Baldwin coached and case was held!
Baton Rouge where Southern and LSU have been at it for years(the great divide)!!
Baton Rouge the great UL sayers, USL callers, Lafayette turn there noses to us HATERS(not all but they are out there in numbers)

For those who served on a jury before, it is ALL too common for there to be a few strong personalities. If these personalities can get the just of either of the attourneys then they can swing the others in the jury.

Oates if he does not win the appeal would never take on a case for me I can assure you of this.

DaddyCajun

This WILL be appealed, and there will be NO Jury who can be swayed by emotion or feelings. _

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Get Em'

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Originally Posted by Pirogue

What's unfortunate about this absurd ruling is it will force colleges to think long and hard before hiring minorities...

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Very good point.

Isn't becoming a "minister" an avenue to show people how turn the other cheek, to forgive & forget , so says the LORD. Apparently , the rev. baldwin hasn't learned this simple lesson & continues to take his "parishioners" for a "ride". Nothing like showing up for trial in a $100K vehicle - talk about mental anguish - that P.O.S.

Thanks for this PIECE OF CRAP DR. A - hope it was worth it !!!!

This is your legacy, Authement. Live with it !!!!

I'm in, lets do this.

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Originally Posted by BrockMeaux

_ I'm thinking about it. Let's get us a class-action suit going on here. _

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Count me in.

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Originally Posted by Just1More

_
As for Baldwin's arguments of breach of contract... can you imagine some of the coaches that have had contracts or breached the contracts themselves... in comparison to this case? What a joke. What a complete joke. $2 million on breach of contract? Did his lawyer extrapolate his income out for a 15-year contract extension, or the lost opportunity for the "numerous" head coaching positions he passed on in taking the UL job?

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It was reported on BEV that almost $1 million was for lost past wages and lost future earnings because the jury bought his lawyer's argument that had he not been fired JB would by now be either an SEC head coach or an NFL coordinator.

Actually this is not a bad idea....seriously.

At the very least you bring attention to the matter, and ( I know this for a fact being a small business owner) you make the loser spend thousands in defending it. No matter how frivolous (sp?) the lawsuit is you make him spend money..............you gotta love it.

Of course, your going to have to get an attorney to do this pro bono or pay him b/c there's not too many that will take this with nothing up front.