I find the controversy over the non-hiring of Turner Gill at Auburn a little tired. I don't know what happened inside the halls of Auburn, but using Charles Barkley, who isn't exactly known for measured, thoughtful responses, as the news peg for charging racism is tenuous.

Does anybody remember Tyrone Willingham? When he was fired from Notre Dame after only three seasons, it just had to be racially motivated. A few years later it looks like Notre Dame wasn't racist just prescient. The Irish figured out quicker than what it took Washington to figure out -- Willingham's a bad coach with bad people skills.

Now that, of course, doesn't prove or disprove anything with regard to Auburn, but just goes to say that first reactions are often off target, and to so quickly jump to conclusions can leave you looking dumb down the road.