News-Record.com

Was that really Elizabeth Dole I saw this morning on a Bojangles Fried Chicken commercial?

And we said she was too timid to make bold moves.

An update: Our intrepid Raleigh reporter, Mark Binker, has gotten to the bottom of this Southern-fried oddity. Apparently Dole was as surprised by the spot as we were.

A recent note from a reader:

"This for the person who chooses the letters to publish, since I was not able to get through on the suggested way to comment on letters: In the Greensboro land line telephone directory there are 4 Bill Smiths, 3 Billy Smiths and 16 William Smiths, several of whom other than myself are known to friends and associates as 'Bill.' "

"I have been asked several times by friends here at Friends Homes at Guilford if I wrote a recent letter signed 'Bill Smith,' with no further identification. Probably there were others also whose acquaintances wondered, whether or not they were asked.

"Would it not be a good idea to be more specific about the writer when such a very common name is attached to a letter? For example, you might include an address, phone number, or something else. You can be sure that people do read these letters."

"Cordially, (Rev.) William C Smith Jr."

As a guy named Allen Johnson, I feel your pain, Rev. Smith. The last time I looked, there were three of us in the Greensboro phone book. Then there's the Olympic track star Allen Johnson. Plus a guy named Alan Johnson, who happens to be my neighbor ...and college classmate (poor guy; he got some of my calls then, too).

This issue comes up from time to time in the case of common names and letters to the editor (in fact, I've posted about it before).

For instance, Donald Moore, president and general manager of the Greensboro Grasshoppers, has been confused with another Don Moore, a frequent letter writer. The Hoppers' Moore, then with the Greensboro Bats, once wrote a letter to make clear the distinction between the two.

The issue had become especially dicey since Donald C. Moore was vice president of the Greensboro Sports Council and the other Don Moore was a frequent and outspoken critic of coliseum Managing Director Matt Brown.

As for our general policy, while we encourage people with such names to add initials and Jr. Sr., etc., to avoid confusion, we don't require it.

We don't however, publish addresses or phone numbers, only their cities or towns -- we do require addresses and phone numbers for our records -- to help protect letter writers' privacy.

P.S. From the Shameless Promotion Dept.: Donald C. Moore is our latest NewsMaker interview.

Greensboro police report a disturbing trend among young people that can feed, and be fed by, the increasing incidence of youth gang involvement.

More and more friction and resentment are arising among African American and white youth toward Hispanics, they say.

"It's black and white against brown," said Detective Ernest Cuthbertson, who specializes in youth gangs for the police department.

In a new twist on old prejudices, black kids and white kids are making life miserable for Latinos, police say, especially in our schools.

What a sorry shame.

Superintendent Terry Grier says he is aware of the new challenges and cites senstivity training --- which he notes some people dismiss and deride as political correctness -- as one solution.

Whatever works, we need to do.

The last thing this community needs is new objects for our disaffection.

This week's column.

On Jan. 2, 2000, I shared in this space my personal wish list for downtown projects — which, I admit, is pretty easy to do in Fantasy Land.

Ignoring such petty details as construction costs, land acquisition and zoning issues, I gushed forth a truckload of fanciful ideas for center-city revitalization.

To my credit, I did include with each item a "reality check" with at least one expert on the feasibility of the notion. But "feasible" and "doable" are distant cousins at best.

Scientifically speaking, I was just making stuff up.

Then a funny thing happened on the road to make-believe: Many of my hopes and visions actually materialized. So did some I'd never dreamed of.

A center-city park? A downtown law school? Get outta here.

One of my most cherished ideas, a downtown baseball stadium, seemed a long shot, at best. "Stubbornly clinging to the notion that the county should have bought Carolina Circle Mall and relocated a number of its agencies there," I wrote in 2000, "I would build the stadium on Eugene Street at Lindsay, a site the health and social services departments should be vacating for Carolina Circle."

Of course, Carolina Circle never housed any government offices and eventually was razed to make way for Wal-Mart. But the county offices did relocate. And the ballpark was built at precisely the site I suggested, entirely with private money.

Now it's about to break a national attendance record. Who'd have thunk it?

I also wrote in 2000: "In the heart of my downtown, what used to be the Wachovia Building would be stripped to its steel-girder skivvies and converted into apartments and condos on the upper floors and restaurants and retail space downstairs. Imagine the allure of penthouses in the heart of the city."

Seven years ago, Jimmy Black, then the chairman of Downtown Greensboro Inc., was, well, polite when asked what he thought. "I don't know that it's feasible," he said back then, "but it's not outside the realm of possibility."

This release came in today's e-mail:

"The Greensboro Historical Museum announced it is commissioning the Touring Theatre of North Carolina to present a historical play for Greensboro's bicentennial celebration. Based on staff research for the Greensboro: A Crossroads for Many Voices exhibition, the play will span 300 years of local history and resonate with the voices of those of the past. Significant events which have contributed to the city’s growth will also be highlighted, while period music will further underscore the emotions of the times.

"The idea to present a play arose from conversations among museum staff while brainstorming programming ideas for Greensboro’s 200th birthday. Therefore the museum approached Brenda Schleunes, the Producing and Artistic Director of Touring Theatre of North Carolina because of her expertise in creating new works from historical documents.

"She was absolutely thrilled by the idea," said Fred Goss, museum director.

The play is an excellent idea, but, of course, not without potential conflict, since some of history's lessons can be painful.

Will it, for instance, note Nov. 3, 1979?

As an "Andy Griffith Show" fan (who isn't?) I'm reminded of the episode about a big play revisiting the historic Battle of Mayberry (Episode 188).

Turns out the town wasn't quite ready for the truth as revealed by Opie in a school paper.

And even in the land of Andy, Aunt Bee and Goober, it got ugly, folks..

Going, going, gone soon from a checkout counter near you ...

The paragon of made-up "journalism," The Weekly World News, is going out of business, reports The Washington Post.

That means no more stories about Elvis faking his own death or Hillary making it with an alien.

With its circulation dwindling and fake-news junkies going elsewhere for their fix (the Sc-Fi Channel? The Internet?).

Unless they made this one up, too.

In the latest dispatch from Richard Prince:

"A 19-year-old handyman who has confessed to killing Oakland journalist Chauncey Bailey with a shotgun is not believed to have worked alone, police said on Monday, raising the possibility that a splinter Black Muslim group conducted the first assassination in memory of a American-born black journalist on American soil."

It's election season already?

I'm headed out to the first city candidates forum of the season tonight, sponsored by the Greensboro Neightborhood Congress.

Its format, writes Trudy Atkins in an e-mail to our civic team editor, Eddie Wooten:

It will begin with a two minute "vision" speech by each of he 17 candidates

More on my first impressions later.

I am curious as to why you refuse to hold Howard Coble accountable. Last week before the House adjourned it voted on 23 critical bills, including that security bill. Howard was AWOL for all of it because he decided to begin his vacation early. Yet, do I read a headline about how we got ZERO representation in Congress? No I do not.

It is time for you people to step and do your jobs. Too bad if you like him or think he's a nice guy or want to give him your usual pass. The fact is he is a horrible representative for his district. His "legendary" constituent services are no different than anyone would do. And he has been incompetent at everything in which he was put in charge when the Republicans controlled Congress.

Let's start telling the truth.

An entry on Congressman Howard Coble was prematurely posted last night without context or a response. Here is what it was supposed to say. I'm sorry for any confusion this may have caused.

This e-mail came from a reader today:

"I am curious as to why you refuse to hold Howard Coble accountable. Last week before the House adjourned it voted on 23 critical bills, including that security bill. Howard was AWOL for all of it because he decided to begin his vacation early. Yet, do I read a headline about how we got ZERO representation in Congress? No I do not.

"It is time for you people to step and do your jobs. Too bad if you like him or think he's a nice guy or want to give him your usual pass. The fact is he is a horrible representative for his district. His "legendary" constituent services are no different than anyone would do. And he has been incompetent at everything in which he was put in charge when the Republicans controlled Congress.

"Let's start telling the truth."

We have been critical of Coble and other congressmen and senators in Washington when we felt it was warranted. We've also praised them.

We especally took Coble to task a few years ago for defending the internment of Japanese Americans. We praised his willingness to break ranks with other Republicans on the Iraq war.

We criticized him recently for not following through on that stance in more recent votes.

And we have longed for him to have more than token Democratic competition for re-election.

That said, we also endorsed him in the last election.

We have written editorials and columns about the work of Mel Watt, Coble, Elizabeth Dole, Brad Miller and others. And we'd like to write even more about the day-to-day efforts of our representatives in Washington.

But we don't have a reporter or editorial writer in Washington, so we don't cover them to that extent.

This week's column:

In a headline that may (or may not) indicate a rising tide of gang activity in Greensboro, police last week arrested a Washington gang member whom they describe as "a pretty big threat here."

Twenty-two-year-old William Cordova was bold if not especially smart. Police say he is a member of the Latin West Coast gang MS-13. When he was arrested he was wearing a ball cap decorated with the letters "MS" on the front and "13" on the back.

He was a fugitive, a person of interest in the fatal shooting of a woman at a D.C. bus stop, among others.

Add this latest development to a growing thread of troubling incidents — a nightclub shooting, an apartment shooting, graffiti peppered with gang signs and names, scores of incidents in other communities — and it seems clear that Greensboro, and much of the rest of the state, has a serious gang problem. Or do we?

Police point to a rising census of local gang members. They say Cordova's mere presence here indicates ties between local gangs and national gangs. City Council candidates in a forum Thursday night repeatedly endorsed the need for a gang unit on the police force.

Others see these incidents as bad news, for sure, but no sign that Crips and Bloods are about to invade Elm Street. A recent report by the Washington-based Justice Policy Research Institute dispels many of the alarms about gang threats as half-baked and overhyped. It also says gangs account for a very small percentage of violent crimes and, in fact, crimes in general.
Closer to home, the report concludes with clinical certainty, "the data support no evidence for the notion that North Carolina is experiencing a gang crisis."

CBS's "60 minutes" rebroadcast a piece last Sunday on the tendency of some African American communities to frown on snitching to police.

It noted a perverse (my word) code of honor that says you don't tell, even on known violent criminals -- especially on known violent criminals -- a code reinforced by rappers in real life and in their music.

The piece also mentioned a reality series by Black Entertainment Television that focuses on the days leading to the incarceration of the rapper, Lil' Kim, who did time behind bars on perjury charges related to a shooting.

The tag line for the show, "Lil' Kim: Countdown to Lockdown": "She's going to prison with her mouth shut and her head held high."

BET is run by a former Greensboro resident, Debra L. Lee, a super-successful and intelligent Harvard Law grad who was handed the reins of the network by Charlotte Bobcats owner Robert Johnson, BET's founder.

She can do better than this and in a column I wrote last year that I hoped she would.

Fat chance.

The National Association of Black Journalists last week awarded BET "Thumbs-Down" recognition for its "its depiction of black images in the media, lack of news and public affairs and the network’s neglect to broadcast the funeral of civil rights icon Coretta Scott King in 2006."

A more recent concoction of bad taste, "Hot Ghetto Mess," did not exist when the dubious BET award was determined. Too bad. The network might have gotten two thumbs down, eight additional fingers and a pair of toes.

In the wake of blistering criticism (ya think?) BET has changed the name of "Hot Ghetto Mess," to "We' Got To Do Better."

Lipstick and a touch of mascara on a pig.

The new series, says the Hollywood Reporter, is a compilation of viewer-submitted home videos and BET-produced man-on-the-street segments that show African Americans "in unflattering situations that typically illustrate the excesses of so-called hip-hop culture."

BET contends it's a way of pointing out through comedy how destructive and foolish these excesses can be. Yeah right.

BET doesn't stop there.

Not content merely to offend, the network has chosen to shock and awe our sensibilities with an alleged PSA that encourages viewers to read a book -- as in "read a mother-blankin' book, nigga."

Lee, a Dudley High graduate and a mother, is not putting her considerable talent and intelligence to good use.

I bet she wouldn't show this stuff to her own kids.

She's got to do better.

It's good to see that the city of Greensboro has acquired most of the land it needs to revitalize the South Elm/ Lee area.

Overshadowed by higher-profile projects, that corner of town has been neglected for years ... and it shows.

The next step is environmental clean-up, then the sale of the land to a developer.

The area's makeover will provide a lift to nearby neighborhoods, help discourage crime and vagrancy and provide a more attractive front doorstep to downtown.

It's also a prime example of how a failure can spawn success.

Part of the site originally was targeted for the minor-league stadium that eventually became First Horizon Park.

But problems in land acquisition, the extent of the contamination and even resistance from City Council members stalled and ultimately killed that idea.

The council eventually saw the light, and so now, may South Elm and Lee.

This week's column is an expanded version of an earlier post.

CBS's "60 minutes" rebroadcast a piece last Sunday on the tendency in some African American communities to frown on "snitching" to police.

It noted a perverse (my word) code of honor that says don't tell, even on known violent criminals — especially on known violent criminals — a code reinforced by rappers in real life and in their music.

It also recalled similar sentiments by a local school board member, Deena Hayes, who bristled last year that she didn't want students to become snitches for police — the moral presumably being that if you see someone doing something harmful or unlawful, keep your big mouth shut.

This, of course, isn't strictly a black thing. We all know what happened to snitches on "The Sopranos."

But it is particularly harmful in the black community, where relations with police already are fragile.

The "60 Minutes" piece also mentioned a reality series by Black Entertainment Television that focuses on the days leading to the incarceration of the rapper, Lil' Kim, who did time behind bars on perjury charges related to a shooting.

The tag line for the show, "Lil' Kim: Countdown to Lockdown": "She's going to prison with her mouth shut and her head held high."

BET is run by a former Greensboro resident, Debra L. Lee, a wildly successful and intelligent Harvard Law grad who was handed the reins of the network by Charlotte Bobcats owner Robert Johnson, BET's founder.

Lee has been made a millionaire and a cable TV power broker during a tenure with BET. If she only would enrich the lucrative network with the good taste and quality it deserves.

Fat chance.

The National Association of Black Journalists two weeks ago awarded BET "Thumbs-Down" recognition for "its depiction of black images in the media, lack of news and public affairs and the network's neglect to broadcast the funeral of civil rights icon Coretta Scott King in 2006."

A more recent concoction of bad taste, "Hot Ghetto Mess," did not exist when the dubious BET award was determined.

Too bad. The network might have gotten two thumbs down, eight additional fingers and a pair of toes.

In the wake of blistering criticism (ya think?) BET has changed the name of "Hot Ghetto Mess" to "We Got To Do Better."

Lipstick and a touch of mascara on a pig.

The new series, says the Hollywood Reporter, is a compilation of viewer-submitted home videos and BET-produced man-on-the-street segments that show African Americans "in unflattering situations that typically illustrate the excesses of so-called hip-hop culture."

BET contends it's a way of pointing out through comedy how destructive and foolish these excesses can be. Yeah right.

As I fully expected, T. Dianne Bellamy-Small survived a recall challenge in today's utterly useless special election.

This election had all the earmarks of a nonevent:

No drama.Bellamy-Small led from start to finish.

No atmosphere. The ambiance in the Commissioners meeting chamber at the Old Guilford County Courthouse was funereal.

No point. Whether Bellamy-Small won or lost it meant nothing.

Bellamy-Small may want to worry a bit about the 5.6 percent turnout.

Despite the backing of the Pulpit Forum, and her assertions that she is visible and accessible and constantly working for her constituents, she has yet to muster much passion or energy among voters in District 1.

Her rallies have been sparsely attended. Despite the publicity and the controversy surrounding Tuesday's recall -- and despite Bellamy-Small's "victory" -- most of the District 1 voters choose to stay home.

Not exactly a convincing vote of confidence.

You've got to wonder what's taking so long whether his bosses in the Greensboro Police Department did or didn't know whether Lt. James Hinson and another officer were starting a home for troubled teen girls on the side.

That question has been hanging for weeks now and still no answer.

It simply would seem to be a matter of asking: Did you or didn't you? And then confirming that with the appropriate supervisor or supervisors.

(We already know Chief Tim Bellamy wasn't aware.)

Why must everything be such a waiting game?

Citizens already have waited since what seems like the disco era for the outcome of an SBI report on the department. Councilwoman Sandy Carmany attributes that Jim Coman of the attorney general's office being distracted by the Mike Nifong case.

Fair enough.

But what's the excuse for the long silence on Hinson?

Some letters writers have suggested that disgraced NFL star Michael Vick, who faces a prison sentence because of his role in a dogfighting operation, should face a lifetime ban from the NFL.

I don't think so.

Vick certainly appears to deserve severe punishment, but I'm not so sure a lifetime ban from football is appropriate.

Vick should do the time for his despicable crimes, but forever is too long a time.

He should have a chance to redeem himself. That's part of the spirit of the justice system.

When his punishment is over he could turn off his life around, on the field and off.

Either way, it won't be easy. The considerable baggage he's lugging right now will be a lot harder to shake than a charging defensive lineman.

No offense to the people at the Guilford County Animal Shelter, but I find it hard to go there -- not because the staff isn't working hard, and for a noble cause.

But because so many of us leave our animals there when we don't want them anymore. That's sad to see.

Around this time of year, the shelter gets about 80 abandoned animals a day.

I went there to see the 15 pit bulls that are being kept there as evidence in a dogfighting case. You might be surprised at how friendly these dogs are. To humans at least.

They just don't like other dogs.

I told a co-worker how pretty I found a pair of brown pit bulls, two energetic females with bright eyes and flapping tongues..

He looked at me funny.

Chances are, of course, that all of the pit bulls I saw today will be put to death.

But there is a good side to all the news about Michael Vick, who has confessed now to his involvement in dogfighting.

The increased publicity has raised public awareness. Adoptions are up. Now, if we could only do better on the front end of the equation and decrease the new arrivals.

A sight that stirred mixed emotions Saturday afternoon, in light of recent news:

A man, woman and child under a shade tree in front of the Harris-Teeter on Pisgah Church Road. Their sign, handwritten in magic marker on white poster board: "Pit bull puppy."

The mama dog and the baby dog played in the grass.

This week's column.

As of this writing, the News & Record editorial staff has conducted 15 City Council candidate interviews over a total span of more than 10 hours, give or take a minute.

Candidate interviews are inherently inconvenient, since they consume extra time in each work day that we never had to begin with. There are still phone calls to answer and other meetings to attend. And there are still editorials and columns to write.

The candidates are busy people, too, many with full-time jobs of their own. But every one of them this election has consented to an interview.

I just wish some of them would drink the water.

Despite the worst drought around here since forever and temperatures of more than 100 degrees on several days, not one candidate has sipped one drop of the bottled water the News & Record has provided for interviews. I hope it’s nothing personal.

And despite candidates' cool reception to the N&R's H2O, the interview sessions are invaluable.

What better way to get up close and personal to the men and women who want to lead the city for the next two years?

This is where we've learned, thus far, that District 1 hopeful Tonya Clinkscale voted against the recall of one of her opponents, incumbent T. Dianne Bellamy-Small.

That District 5 incumbent Sandy Carmany questions Mayor Keith Holliday's signing of a confidentiality agreement with a developer.

And that one of Carmany's challengers, Trudy Wade, believes the council at least should have responded to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, yea or nay.

When we committed to go to individual interviews rather than group interviews, as in the recent past, we knew it would be harder. Especially since a whopping 32 candidates are running. But it allows us a chance to dig deeper and learn more during an unusually competitive campaign that guarantees a new mayor and a very different City Council.

The revised interview process is one of several new approaches we're trying this year to make our election coverage more accessible, more relevant and more meaningful.

Today's election interviews included a 90-plus-minute sitdown with District 1 incumbent T. Dianne Bellamy-Small, who was engaging and informative.

She even laughed and smiled a time or two.

Bellamy-Small obviously felt vindicated that she survived a recall election last week.

"I'm happy for the district," she said.

She also said she would like to see changes to the manner in which recall elections are conducted, among them:

1. a more clearly worded ordinance that overtly spells out who is eligible to sign a recall petition.

2. tougher criteria on the grounds for a recall, as in breaking a law, or some other provable malfeasance.

I doon't disagree.

While they're at it, it would make sense to restrict when a recall election could be held. This one was far too close to the regular election to make any practical sense.

Bellamy-Small's answers were, on the whole, thoughtful and well-informed. She had clearly done her homework on the issues.

But she made it clear that this session was the exception and not the rule. She handed out a statement before the interview with me, Doug Clark, Margaret Banks and Goverment Editor Eddie Wooten:

"I, T. Dianne Bellamy-Small, a candidate for the Greensboro City Council District 1 seat, am reluctantly participating in this candidate interview with the News & Record. Due to the extremely biased and unbalanced coverage I have received from the paper both in the editorial and news divisions over the last nearly 18 months, I do not feel I will be given a fair opportunity by this paper towards my candidiacy. I respectfully request that this statement accompany any articles or editorials that may be written about me and my candidacy for the city council. Thank you."

We tried to convince Bellamy-Small that we have no vendetta against her. Heck, we endorsed her in 2005. That doesn't mean we'll always agree with her. But we'll do our best to be fair and factual.

It doesn't help, however, when we can very rarely get her side of the story, and only, in most of those cases, by fax or e-mail.

In a masterful, passionate presentation to an overflow crowd tonight at A&T's Webb Hall, Greensboro Police Detective Ernest Cuthbertson called on the community to work together to fight the growing gang problem in Greensboro.

I got to the session a little late and found myself standing, and then sitting on a corner of the stage from which Cuthbertson delivered a PowerPoint presentation.

I couldn't even see the screen; I had a better view of Cuthbertson's laptop backstage. But nobody had any trouble hearing Cuthbertson's message: Reach out to these kids; reach out to each other. Help the police help you.

Even when one man in the crowd challenged Cuthbertson, who is African American, as being used as a tool against young black men, Cuthbertson stood his ground.

And then he asked for the man's help in fighting gangs.

"I'm not talking about what I've heard," said Cuthbertson, who grew up in Greensboro's Morningside Homes ("The Grove" we called it growing up here). "I'm talking about what I've seen."

The crowd consisted of young and old, black and white, male and female, among them a number of City Council candidates.

The event was organized by City Councilwomen Goldie Wells and T. Dianne Bellamy-Small. A pleasantly surprised Wells said they had no idea this many people would turn out. The event was scheduled months ago and aimed primarily at Districts 1 and 2. It was good to see the rest of the city represented as well.

Let's hope Greensboro as a community stays focused on this issue as more than a flavor of the month.

A Gallop poll finds little sympathy among pro football fans for Michael Vick.

Many favor a lifetime ban for the disgraced Atlanta Falcons quarterback for his role in a dogfighting ring. A majority also favor a "long" prison sentence.

I understand their outrage. Vick not only abused dogs for profit and for entertainment, directly and indirectly. But he has admitted to executing dogs who failed to perform well enough in the ring by hanging and electrocution.

That said, I sense a gross inconsistency in the outrage directed at Vick versus other sports and entertainment figures who have skirted the law in potentially even more tragic ways.

It's particularly disconcerting how someone like St. Louis Cardinals Manager Tony La Russa was arrested in Florida for drunk driving during spring training and nary was heard a disparaging word.

In March, La Russa was arrested after police said they found him asleep inside his running SUV at a traffic light.

La Russa had a blood alcohol content of 0.093 percent. The legal driving limit n Florida is 0.08 percent.

La Russa was booked on a misdemeanor count and was released after posting $500 cash bond.

When La Russa walked onto the field before the Cardinals' next spring training game, many fans gave him a standing ovation.

A month later, a Cardinal player died from in a car crash while driving drunk.

Josh Hancock, a relief pitcher, died when his SUV crashed into the back of a tow truck.

Don't get me started on the Lindsay Lohans and Nicole Richies of the world, whose abuse of drugs and alcohol while driving has roused curiosity and even sympathy, but little outrage for the danger they posed behind the wheel.

We know what could have happened in those instances. It did in the case of Tolly Carr.

As for animal cruelty as an issue, I'm not sure those of us in Guilford County ought to be throwing too many stones. Just visit the local animal shelter to see the dogs and cats we blissfully abandon and mistreat in droves day after day.

I won't go into the moral questions surrounding hunting for sport.

The bottom line: Vick's actions were clearly wrong and inhumane. But the righteous outrage from the rest of us rings a little hollow.

There's Michael Vick and then there's the famously stingy late hotelier Leona Helmsley, who bequeathed a $12 million trust fund to her dog.

Named Trouble, the Maltese also will be buried alongside Helmsley, when the doggie's time comes.

Helmsley grandkids, by the way, got zilch from the billionaire's estate.

I owe my colleague, Eddie Wooten, a Dr. Pepper.

Grimsley beat my alma mater, Dudley, tonight in high school football, 21-0, the first defeat for the Panthers and the third consecutive victory for the Whirlies.

I'll be gracious in defeat (although I fully expected to win a Diet Mountain Dew in the friendly wager). Grimsley had weathered some academic problems and miscommunication between the coaching staff and the administration in the off-season.

But those problems obviously are resolved. The Whirlies apparently are performing well on the field and in the classroom.

As for Dudley, we'll be back.