[JRutledge]

Not only have I watched Teddy V for many years on TV, I had the opportunity to watch him in person several times at the Big Ten Tournament in both Chicago and Indy. I think Teddy gets a bad rap for his behavior. The reality is many D1 officials do the very same things. Many officials just did not have such a big incident with such a well known coach. I am sure if someone had T'd up a coach as well known and with a similar reputation, we might talk about them as well. I have watched other officials so similar things on the court but we do not talk about them in the media or hear. Of course the most public situation was the incident with Bobby Knight at the Illinois/Indiana game. I also think people bring some very idealistic view to officiating as well as if all of us behave the same way on the court. Teddy V is not different than most officials. He is very confident in himself and it shows by how he carries himself on the court. I think he is clearly one of the best officials around and won an award this year that said just that.

Peace