A.J. Guyton to Bob Knight: Return to Indiana, help heal old wounds
In the 14 years since Indiana controversially fired Bob Knight, the iconic former Hoosiers coach has never returned to the school he led to five Final Fours and three national championships.
One of Knight's most famous former players hopes he sets aside his grudge soon.
Former Big Ten player of the year A.J. Guyton, one of five new members of Indiana's athletic hall of fame, wrote an open letter on his Facebook page appealing to Knight to come back to Bloomington for the Nov. 7 induction dinner. Guyton believes a reconciliation between Knight and Indiana is the only way the program will ever reconnect with former players torn between showing loyalty to their coach and their school.
"Without you, Coach Knight, the relationships are strange at IU," Guyton wrote. "We are accepted and appreciated but there's a mission to "move on" from us. You're the only person who can make everything right & bridge this gap. It's not about the former administration, it's about the players you created [who] are in limbo, stuck in between. We are all experiencing various successes but not knowing how to include IU basketball.
"I'm certainly not asking anyone to apologize for anything. I'm simply extending a public invitation for you to do ME a favor, attend the induction ceremony on November 7th, it would mean the world to me as a former player and supporter. For you to come see the young professional you've helped create. I believe it's time, i believe the time is now.
"Indiana University, whatever charity you have to donate to on Coach Knight's behalf, lets get it done. Time's ticking & we all deserve a homecoming. I'm asking you, Coach Bob Knight, you said you'd do anything for me once I graduated, can you please attend my induction ceremony, which is coming back home to Indiana University?"
While the 1,129-word letter from Guyton may be the most heartfelt plea to Knight, it certainly isn't the first. In 2009, Indiana inducted Knight into its athletic hall of fame but he declined to attend despite multiple written invitations from athletic director Fred Glass. Indiana coach Tom Crean has also reached out to Knight to no avail, even after hiring former player Calbert Cheaney onto his staff.
The hostility between Knight and Indiana stems from the way school administrators placed him on a "zero-tolerance policy" late in his tenure and used a series of off-the-court incidents as an excuse to force him out in Sept. 2000.
Knight had always been a polarizing figure in Bloomington, revered by some for leading Indiana to 661 wins and maintaining a near-perfect graduation rate and reviled by others for his chair throwing antics and violent temper. The final straws for former Indiana president Myles Brand included an Indiana freshman accusing Knight of grabbing him by the arm in response to being greeted by his last name and ex-player Neil Reed alleging the iconic coach choked him during practice.
The bitter divorce created an ever-widening schism among those who supported Indiana and those loyal to Knight. It didn't help when Indiana security removed fans clad in homemade "Bring Back Bobby" T-Shirts in Feb. 2008. Or when Ohio State played a taped message from Knight before a game against Indiana in Feb. 2013 in which the Buckeyes alum declared, "I used to coach a little bit, and there's nothing better than Ohio State basketball."
Those incidents explain why Guyton believes it's unlikely Knight will honor his request and make his return to Bloomington on Nov. 7.
"We think that forgiveness is weakness, but it's absolutely not; it takes a very strong person to forgive," Guyton wrote. "It's a long shot, but if we share this letter enough, it might end up in the right hands."
For more Indiana news, visit Peegs.com.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
