Rozner: Imagine a world where victims meant more than victories

There they were Tuesday morning, 16 Tennessee coaches standing before the world and defending the university's athletic department after weeks of bad press.

This came two weeks after a federal suit filed in Nashville by six unidentified women, which claimed that Tennessee policies made them vulnerable to sexual assault and that the school had a "clearly unreasonable response."

The university also looked out for male athletes, according to the lawsuit, and interfered with disciplinary methods.

Women's basketball coach Holly Warlick said the subject has been broached while on the recruiting trail, and football coach Butch Jones also said fellow coaches are mentioning the lawsuit against Tennessee during recruiting.

Said Jones, "Our competitors are using it against us."

Thus, the news conference Tuesday, when the coaches stood as one to champion their school and assure everyone that all is well in Knoxville.

Said women's soccer coach Brian Pensky, "Instead of us continuing to lay down and just kind of take it and take the beating, we felt like as a coaching unit we want our administration to know that we have their back and we have each other's backs, and we have our student-athletes' backs."

So administration is backing the athletic department, the athletic department is backing the athletes and the coaches are upset that competitors are using it against them in recruiting.

No wonder they lined up together and fought for airtime Tuesday.

The outcome of the lawsuit remains to be seen, and we can't know right now what the truth is.

So while not indicting any single campus, it is nonetheless a reminder of what occurs throughout the sports world on a regular basis.

And it would be nice if universities around the country didn't automatically back the player over the alleged victim, and then ensured she didn't face the kind of constant harassment that forces her to skip class, suffer academically and eventually transfer from the school entirely.

It would be nice if universities spent the time and money it would take to properly explain to football players that women are not on campus for their amusement, that women aren't equipment on their personal playground as they pass through on the way to being a first-round draft pick.

It would be nice if university administrations and athletic departments didn't first try to cover up allegations or the crimes themselves, a practice that is far too common.

It would be nice if consent was as rehearsed as the alma mater.

It would be nice if the NFL commissioner took seriously domestic violence before he's shamed into it by a video.

It would be nice if teams didn't value the pass rush over the statement it makes when it hires a player who has a page filled with domestic violence incidents.

It would be nice if sports teams showed just a hint of compassion for the accuser in sexual-assault cases instead of acting as if their player is a saint, couldn't possibly have done it and that the women is to blame.

It would be nice if every team's fan base gave some consideration to the victim instead of worrying only about victories and attacking the accuser from beginning to end.

It is at least a part of why only 2 percent of sexual assaults end in punishment and why women are so reluctant to come forward.

Jones, to his credit, said, "Everything is about the alleged victims. We feel for them, hurt for them. Also, though, it's not who we are."

It would be nice if sports at all levels led the revolution toward a more civilized approach to a horrific crime that causes a lifetime of trauma, rather that piling on and making lives worse.

It would be nice if all sports led the charge and spent just a little bit of time and money educating, while offering a hint of compassion.

Yeah, it would be nice.

But we've learned not to hold our breath.

brozner@dailyherald.com

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