Larry Smith is having a very tough year. It got tougher Tuesday when Smith kicked his best receiver, Travis Garvin, off the Missouri football team. That means the team has less talent than it did a week ago, but in the long run, the Tigers are better off, and Smith did the right thing. Smith has handled the media very poorly this year, and that’s too bad. He’s keeping secrets, and he’s paranoid, and he’s been a little silly with his attacks on the press, but that probably comes with knowing you’re on the verge of losing your job if you don’t have a good year. That aside, I like Larry Smith. I think he’s a solid football coach, and I wish he was having more success at the moment. And whatever faults Smith may have, he’s on the money with his handling of Travis Garvin. When Garvin was suspended for failing a drug test, Smith gave him another chance, and gave him clear conditions he had to meet. Garvin failed, and now says Smith wanted him to play with a torn ACL. That sounds like hogwash to me. Smith is a better person than that, and he proved it when he showed Garvin the door.
