Manginogate, ticket scandal and now alleged free tickets for workout equipment. None of these incidents on their own would appear to be too damning as a stand alone, but when an athletic department and a University continues to come under fire based on the actions of a single department is it time to ask the question?
Lew Perkins sits at the head of the table. To recap his time at Kansas he arrived following the Al Bohl/Roy Williams debacle. Perkins would help guide Kansas through a difficult transition and put the program on the verge of some very positive things.
In those immediate years following his hire one of the changes made by Perkins occurred in the ticketing process and priority points system for seating. These changes led to higher revenues for basketball games while also managing to ruffle some feathers in the process.
Those that were in and around Lawrence and or Kansas City from '03-'05 probably knew or spoke with someone who wasn't at all happy with Lew and the fact that the seats they'd held for "x" number of years now moved to the rafters. Plain and simple the greed factor didn't do Lew any favors.
Still success can move a lot of concern to the back burner as those who originally despised Lew didn't have a whole lot of ammo when the Jayhawk programs hit their peak a few years later. Facility upgrades, an Orange Bowl, a National Title, it sure seemed to be all worth it. As the saying goes however, things are never as good as they seem and never as bad as they seem.
Just two years removed from that incredible '07-'08 academic year things seem to be catching up with ol Lew and his detractors from a few years back have a little bit of wiggle room to grumble once again. I'll keep my personal opinion to myself for the time being, but I wanted to ask the question. Is it time for Lew to go? Is it time to change directions and wipe the slate clean? No Kansas fan enjoys seeing their team or school with a black eye, the question is what side of the story do you believe? And more-so, what side of the story does the rest of the public perception believe?
At 64 years old Lew Perkins is more than likely going to be heading off to retirement in the near future. Does Kansas give him an opportunity to cement his legacy by guiding Kansas through the current conference realignment, and do they give him the opportunity to see the start of a new era of Kansas football get off the ground? So which is it? Stay or go for Lew?