Bo Pellini recently blew a fuse on Saturday.  Knowing he was wrong for letting his temper get the best of him, Pellini apologized on Monday.  Dennis Dodd is  the Senior Writer for CBSSports.com and was very critical of Pellini’s actions.

You can read Dodd’s article by clicking here.

Which Utopian territory Dodd was raised in, I am not sure.  However, the cheap shots he takes at the city of Youngstown, Ohio are horrible.  Pellini is from Youngstown and we are proud of him, happy when he comes home, and support him.  The same can be said for Jim Tressel, all of the Stoops brothers, Donald Jones, Brad Smith, Kelly Pavlik,  Ed O’Neill, etc.

Dodd was correct when he referred to Youngstown as a proud and tough town.  He had absolutely no reason to call my hometown “not particularly appealing”, in the first paragraph of his story.  Youngstown lost people when the steel mills closed their doors over 30 years ago.  This city is trying hard to take steps forward.  Youngstown is anchored by a growing university, a revitalized downtown area, a new arena which in the last year alone has hosted Elton John, the Harlem Globetrotters, and Disney on Ice.  It is General Motors territory, V & M Star territory, and has more to offer than so many other places.

Why, Mr. Dodd, do you make the empty claim that people from Youngstown have a chip on their shoulders? 

Show me a Division-I NCAA Football Coach who wouldn’t blast the refs for being outflagged 16-2.  Show me a winning coach who doesn’t grit their teeth, last time I checked Jon Gruden had a Super Bowl ring.  If coaches are nonchalant and lax, they probably are thinking about retirement.  So my question is simple:  Are all good college football coaches from Youngstown, or is Pellini’s intensity magnified by you, Dennis Dodd, because he is from Youngstown?

You owe the fine people of Youngstown an apology, Mr. Dodd.  Your story would have been more agreeable without the geographical name-calling and weak attempt at stereotyping.  Bo Pellini acted in an unfavorable manner, was held accountable, apoligized, and is moving on.  Again, when this man does countless hours of charity work in his hometown, has family and friends who love and respect him, has colleagues in the same profession he grew up with, and takes the time to talk to an ordinary Joe – we are proud to have him.  Youngstown is proud.

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