Dear Coach Thompson,
It's been a little more than a year since you were named coach of Ball State University's men's basketball program. Since you took the helm there have been some good times, but most everything we hear now, facts and rumors alike, have been negative.
It's a fact that you went 9-22 in your first season with the Cardinals and claimed the Ball State title for most losses in a single season.
Last month, documents were sent to the NCAA to notify it of some minor rules that you and your assistants broke for the second time.
Most recently, you walked into your office to the sickening reality that an unknown, spineless intruder visited and left behind discouraging and racially charged notes.
The facts alone would make anyone cringe, but the rumors are even worse.
There's talk that you're considering leaving the university in the wake of the notes that were left in your office. People claim you're working hard to get out of Muncie as soon as possible.
Rumors say you're trying to sell your house. People say your wife has quit her job. Some are even going as far as to say you've taken your children out of daycare.
The validity of rumors can always be questioned, and the best place to find answers is to talk with people directly involved with the situation.
Through it all, we haven't been able to talk to you once about what happened and what you're thinking now. Your boss has told us not to believe the rumors, and that you're simply unreachable because you're taking a vacation before recruiting season starts. We don't know what you're thinking, but we do have some words of advice.
Don't leave.
Despite the calamitous situation that shouldn't be expected anywhere but somehow happened in Muncie, you should stick around for a while.
Leaving now, even in the wake of such an egregious act perpetrated by a cowardly invader, would be tantamount to quitting.
You wouldn't be leaving to "pursue other options" or "as a result of the horrendous acts that were committed." You would be quitting and unwittingly setting a poor example for everyone else.
As a coach, you know that a quitter is the last thing you want on your team. You don't want to put time and energy into motivating someone to do better, only to have them leave when the going gets tough. If you leave now, the only thing the people you're responsible for leading now will have left is the mentality that it's OK to give up in certain situations.
You didn't get to Ball State by giving up, and you certainly won't get very far at a different school if you do choose to leave. Who wants to hire a coach that left his last job when times were tough? In adverse situations, anyone can cut and run but it takes someone special to fight through and come out on top.
After everything that's happened, quitting is the easy way out. However, the easy way and the right way to handle a situation are rarely the same thing.
Sincerely yours,
The Ball State Daily News
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