Every year, a handful of over-the-hill jocks make the news with an off-the-cuff remark they'd immediately prefer to take back. It's news because of its ignorant nature, the candid delivery and the jock's seemingly oblivious naiveté to the ramifications of their actions.

It's sexist, racist, discriminatory and out-of-date. It's shocking in its language and appalling in its intent, but the plot line always is the same. There is the outrageously provocative comment, followed by the uproar, then the ham-fisted apology, then the backlash. The backlash often includes the offender's cronies - some belonging to the maligned racial or ethnic group - saying that so-and-so really isn't a racist, just misinformed.

This happens at least twice a year, every year, and stays formulaic to the bitter end. Most recently, former Notre Dame football player and Heisman-winner Paul Hornung joined the list of numbskulls to tackle race in sports with an ignorant tongue and tone.

Act I: The Provocative Comment - "(Notre Dame) can't stay as strict as we are as far as the academic structure is concerned because we've got to get the black athlete," Hornung said to a Detroit radio station. "We must get the black athlete if we're going to compete."

Act II: The Uproar - Notre Dame released a statement on Tuesday distancing itself from Hornung's views: "We strongly disagree with the thesis of his remarks," the Fighting Irish said. "They are generally insensitive and specifically insulting to our past and current African-American student-athletes."

Act III: The Ham-Fisted Apology - "I was wrong," Hornung told the Associated Press on Wednesday. "What I should have said is, 'For all athletes, it is really tough to get into Notre Dame.'"

Hornung continued: "I don't know if it was insulting, I would say insensitive. It was insensitive because I didn't include the white players."

Act IV: The Backlash - Hornung is called a knucklehead, a "privileged white man" and ignorant on all counts. With just as much zeal, he also is remembered fondly by past black teammates and friends at Notre Dame.

"I know that Paul Hornung is not a racist," former Notre Dame tailback Allen Pinkett told the Chicago Tribune.

Other blunders:

Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder said, "During the slave period, the slave owner would breed his big black with his big woman so that he would have a big black kid - that's where it all started."

Marge Schott said Adolf Hitler was "good at the beginning" but "went too far."

Dusty Baker, on African Americans and Latinos playing baseball day games, said "It's easier for most Latin guys and it's easier for most minority people because most of us come from heat."

Is Hornung just the next heir to the rotating throne of sports bigots, or is he indicative of the pass that most media outlets traditionally give to jocks who decide to informally speak about race and discrimination?

Yes, on both counts. And it's disgusting. Stereotyping, racism and long-standing, deep-rooted discrimination is being chastised everywhere but sports. It's time that sports figures stop getting every chance to redeem themselves, and it's time to recognize racism and discrimination when we hear it. The sports world is proving to be chock full of it year after year after year.

The curtain needs to drop on it.