Ty Willingham on the ESPYs (Updated with video)
Constable Echelon
Remember those Mike Krzyzewski American Express commercials that served primarily to promote Duke basketball to recruits? Plenty of ACC rivals and general Duke haters decried the ads as an unfair recruiting advantage given to a celebrity coach. Sunday night on the ESPYs UW received a similar side benefit when Ty Willingham was featured in the human interest piece on John Carlos and Tommie Smith’s fist raising protest from the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.
The appearance briefly put Ty Willingham (and UW) into living rooms across the country. For all of his faults, Ty Willingham gives Washington the decided recruiting advantage of being a celebrity. His profile has contributed to UW’s last three recruiting classes being ranked 35th, 29th, and 14th nationally despite the less than inspiring (though improving?) on field results.
That was the positivist argument. Negadawgs would assert that Ty is especially good at explaining the off field significance of sports because he’s so terrible on field.
I’ll just shrug my shoulders, say the exposure can’t hurt, and hope for some more wins this season.
