I thought I'd share this great find from The Fanhouse. Everyone is probably well aware of the fact that Greg Doyle called out Coach K in a conference call. But have you heard the audio? There is nothing that can prepare you for the awkwardness at around 7 minutes and 30 seconds.

ACC Conference Call Audio

I'm beginning to like CBSSportsline more and more. First they let a blogger (Deadspin) "glog" the Super Bowl, and now they hold nothing back when taking Coach K to task. From Doyle's article following the call....

Since then, Coach K has waged a public-relations war so inept, so disarmingly dumb, that it has to be intentional. He's mind-freaking us like he mind-freaked potential 2006 lottery pick Josh McRoberts into staying for his sophomore season. He wants everyone to be so busy hating him -- Coach K -- that we forget about Gerald Henderson.

Well Mr. Doyle....I couldn't agree more. It's been this way for awhile. Two years ago I was coming back from Winston-Salem, NC, and I was listening to an NC State radio show following a regular season game against Duke. One of the callers, a father who took his son to the game, was noting that Coach K yelled so many obscenities to a Ref (after a non-foul call) that he had to cover his son's ears. The dad went on to say that the Ref never even motioned for a technical, and tried to ignore the whole tirade.

I tend to believe that all of this came to a head in the public arena with those cheesy American Express Commercials. He dropped those things like an atom bomb on ADs during the tournament, and he's turned an above average basketball program into a manipulative PR machine for himself. He convinces players to come to the school...gets them to stay when their draft stock is high, and they turn into horrible pros. Only one senior from Duke is worth anything in the NBA and that's Shane Battier. The other good ones were smart not to listen to him......Maggette/Brand/Boozer/Deng. Hell even Dunleavy and Shavlik Randolph are passable NBA players. Who can you add to the Battier List.....Duhon and Ewing? (And don't get me started on Team USA....I'll leave that to Simmons.)

I'm just glad people are noticing now (and that Duke sucks). And if you're waiting for a candid article like this from ESPN.....don't hold your breath. They need him for a Sunday Interview before the tournament. Bravo Doyle and Sportsline.

"I am a leader who happens to coach basketball," Krzyzewski says in the ad. "When they get out into the workplace, they're armed with not just a jump shot or a dribble. I want you armed for life. I want you to develop as a player. I want you to develop as a student, and I want you to develop as a human being. My life isn't about playing games. That's why my card is American Express."

Save it ass.

Real Bad Guy (Doyle: CBS)
Gregg Doyle is Off Coach K's Christmas Card List (Fanhouse)
Coach K Defends American Express Ads (The Sporting News)