University of Houston football Coach Tom Herman and a Houston-area sports talk radio host got in quite a disagreement on the air Wednesday.
On Dec. 13, John Lopez of KILT-AM, 610 reported that then-Texas A&M quarterback Kyle Allen was meeting with Herman in Houston. On Tuesday, the Cougars officially announced Allen's transfer. Herman expressed his displeasure with the initial report after Tuesday's announcement.
"A completely inaccurate local report surfaced on Dec. 13 that Kyle and I had met in Houston, a report that could have been damaging to both our program and Kyle, and our accountability and truthfulness in speaking with others," Herman said. "In a world where too many are jumping at the chance to say they were first, I hope we all take time to ensure our reports are accurate."
The date and location of the meeting could have posed a problem for Herman if the report were accurate. It turns out Dec. 13 falls during a period of the NCAA recruiting calendar in which face-to-face meetings with prospects are permitted only in an off-campus setting. If Allen had met Herman on Houston's campus, it could have resulted in an NCAA violation.
On Wednesday, Lopez invited Herman on his and Nick Wright's "In the loop" radio show to sort out their disagreement. In a 22-minute interview, Herman's main issue was that he had spoken with Allen by phone and not in a face-to-face meeting. Herman went on to argue that getting that critical fact wrong called into question the quality of Lopez's reporting.
Herman at one point read the definition of the word "meet," and the three repeatedly interrupted each other during the interview.
At one point, Herman asked Wright, "Who are you, man? How old are you? Are you like 19?" Wright replied, "31 years old."
Herman told Lopez before the interview ended, "I look forward to reading your articles in the future, and I hope you get them more correct and more accurate in the future."
Lopez released a statement Tuesday standing by the integrity of his reporting and saying he was doing his job.
Good guy Sock
A rare show of sportsmanship occurred in Australia on Tuesday during a Hopman Cup tennis match between Australian Lleyton Hewitt and American Jack Sock.
With Sock up 5-4 in the first game, Hewitt was called for a fault on his first serve. Sock stopped him as he prepared to take his second serve.
"That was in if you want to challenge it," he said.
Hewitt didn't quite know how to react. He initially smiled, then moved toward midcourt, still seeming unsure of himself. Sock laughed, then again told Hewitt to "challenge it."
Chair umpire Carlos Ramos allowed the challenge even though Sock technically had conceded the point.
"Good sport, Jack Sock," one of the broadcasters said.
"Well, this better be in, or he's going to look like a goose," added her broadcast partner.
Then, when the ball was shown to be in, the crowd at Perth Arena went wild.
Hewitt went on to defeat Sock 7-5, 6-4.
Sports quiz
How many Grand Slam titles does Jack Sock have?
Answer
One: Sock and Vasek Pospisil won the doubles title at Wimbledon in 2014.
Sports on 01/08/2016