Kansas University still is awaiting word on how the Big 12 Conference will handle postgame comments made Saturday by football coach Mark Mangino.
Assistant commissioner Bob Burda said Monday the Big 12 office sent a letter to KU athletic director Lew Perkins, asking him to review the incident and recommend a punishment, if any — standard procedure for such incidents.
Mangino criticized officiating in the wake of KU’s 27-23 loss to Texas, and hinted that “dollar signs” and Texas’ Bowl Championship Series implications had something to do with it.
“You know what this is about, don’t you?” Mangino told reporters Saturday. “BCS. That’s what made the difference today in the game. That’s what made the difference in the call in front of their bench. Dollar signs.”
Mangino referred to a crucial offensive pass-interference penalty on Charles Gordon in the fourth quarter, one that prevented KU from a first down and likely from securing a victory. The Jayhawks were forced to punt one play later, and Texas had just enough time to score the game-winning touchdown.
If the Longhorns win out, they could secure a berth in one of four BCS games in January, contests that bring millions of dollars to both the university and the Big 12.
Mangino apologized for his words in a statement later Saturday, and has backed off of his comments in interviews since then, including Monday’s Big 12 coaches conference call. He said the apology came on his own, without any influence from Perkins or anybody else.
“I didn’t have any pressure from the athletic director to do that,” Mangino said. “That was the appropriate thing to do, the right thing to do — to correct something I said that I didn’t believe.”
Burda said Perkins had 48 hours to respond to the Big 12’s letter, and commissioner Kevin Weiberg then would review Perkins’ comments and suggestions before handing down a punishment.
At the very least, Mangino can expect to be reprimanded and could face a fine. Burda said a decision could be made and released to the public as early as today.
Mangino’s outburst brought to surface the issue of coaches criticizing officiating. Currently, Big 12 rules prohibit it, and several coaches were asked Monday if such a rule was fair.
Most thought it was.
“I think we all have to understand we’re in this together,” Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione said. “It’s not going to be a perfect situation and sometimes it can be very frustrating when you feel a call could have gone differently than it did. But I really think our conference has a cooperative effort to do the best they can.”
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