WKU definitely needed to fire someone in light of its multi-million dollar football fiasco, but the wrong guy was let go. Actually, two people need to be fired: Dr. Wood Selig and Dr. Gary Ransdell. It was Selig and Ransdell, due to their own super-sized egos and desire to make a legacy for themselves with someone else’s money, who led WKU down this path. Now they sit together at a news conference and make David Elson the scapegoat for what is their own foray into football folly. In 2002, WKU’s Division I-AA championship season was marred by an ugly brawl on the field after the playoff game at Western Illinois. Elson was the defensive coordinator at the time, and kept a sledge hammer on the sideline as a motivational tool. One of his players wielded the hammer in a menacing manner during the fight. Rather than let Elson quietly leave and go to West Virginia as an assistant, Selig hired him as head coach after Jack Harbaugh left. Not content to have one of the top Division I-AA programs in the country, Selig and Ransdell decided to hit WKU alumni and donors up for a $50 million expansion of a stadium that has rarely been sold out over the past 40 years, and doubled the football budget. Meanwhile, tuition skyrocketed. On Monday, David Elson was held accountable for failure to win and sell tickets. Where are Selig’s and Ransdell’s accountability for their role in this mess? Due to their arrogance and greed, this WKU alumnus will never be donating another dime to the university.

Keith Norris

Louisville graduate