Karl Dorrell doesn’t deserve to be fired. He doesn’t! Trust me. I know, because I talked to him once. In fact, I’m aiding and abetting any claim he may make–post-firing or not–that he is being judged differently because he’s black.

Does he feel as if he is not getting a fair shake because he is black?

“Let me put it this way,” he said. “In every opportunity that I’ve had in my coaching career, it was never in my mind that I was dealing with a level playing field. I’ve had to do more to accomplish what I’ve accomplished.

“It’s getting better. But still, that’s just the way it is.”

Well put. I’m convinced that race plays a role in what some of you critics are saying. To think otherwise would be plain foolish. Some of you just don’t know what to make of a coach who does not fit into your convenient stereotypes.

Like Chan Gailey, another black coach with a similar record (37-27, .578 winning percentage) I believe he’s being singled out because of his race, not his 34-26 record, .567 winning percentage, and inability to field a consistent football team from week to week. Both are victims of the same profiling. I guess some of you really can’t handle something different, can you?

Oh, and I’ll also create a website to say this from even though I’m a columnist who covers the guy from time to time. Not odd or fishy at all, really.

Sincerely,

Karl Streeter
LA Times Columnist.

(HT: Signal 2 Noise.)