Football head coach Bobby Williams must be given the same chance as his predecessors. The tone of letters written to The State News as of late, calling for Bobby Williams’ head on a platter, are upsetting, but not surprising.

With a win-at-all-costs approach to college athletics, students, alumni and donors are quick to call for the ax after a couple of less-than-stellar seasons.

Athletics director Ron Mason has publicly stated Williams is here to stay - at least for next season - and I think we should applaud that dedication and loyalty.

While other greats of our storied past amassed greater achievements on the field than Williams has so far, why not consider his impact in our community and, more importantly, on the young players he is responsible for?

With the continuing abysmal rates of student-athlete graduation, nobody is a winner. MSU is 10th in the Big Ten in graduating its athletes. And many of those graduates come from the nonrevenue sports.

When looking at the graduation rates of football players entering MSU during the 1995-96 season, we see only 39 percent graduated within six years.

If Williams, one of only four African-American NCAA Division I-A football head coaches, can help his players be successful in the classroom and their community, why not give him a chance to prove himself on the field?

If he is not successful with his players, both on the field and in the classroom, dump him - but at least give him a chance to succeed.

Sean Frost
sociology graduate student