Gazette sports writer canned on Finebaum show
Hoover Gazette General Manager John Junkin fired one of the paper’s popular sports writers today — live on the Paul Finebaum Show. The writer, Hunter Ford, had been a guest on the show, on which he insinuated that Hoover High School football coach Rush Probst had been having an affair. Junkin told Finebaum that Ford could not substantiate the rumor and that he had been told not to talk about it unless he could prove the allegations.
UPDATE: Listen to Finebaum’s interview with Ford here.
UPDATE: Listen to Ford get canned on Finebaum here.
The termination is a tangential development in a growing scandal surrounding Hoover High School’s football program. Murmurings began Monday, when the school’s athletics director, Jerry Browning, resigned to take a job with Saint James School in Montgomery. Browning told The Birmingham News that he had differences with the program in Hoover and that he had expressed his concerns to Hoover Superintendent Andy Craig.
Since then, Craig has hired retired U.S. District Judge Sam Pointer to conduct and independent investigation of grade tampering benefiting Hoover High athletes.
Hoover High School’s nationally ranked football program became the focus of widespread attention last year after the MTV reality show “Two-A-Days” followed the program through two seasons. The abrasive, salty-mouthed Propst and his star athletes became celebrities as a national audience tuned in each week to the program. The last season ended with Hoover being defeated in the state 6-A championship.
During his show today, talk show host Finebaum alternately brushed off the rumors of Propst’s adultery while peppering his broadcast with double entendres.
“The name of the Two-a-Day show — I wonder where that came from?” Finebaum asked.
Do you have something to share about this story? Let us know.
More to come as the story develops. Hat-tip to Kathy for the heads-up. You can read more about today’s dustup on her blog Birmingham Blues and also at the Capstonereport.com.
— Kyle Whitmire
Popularity: 20% [?]
June 22nd, 2007 at 6:46 pm
Thanks for the link, Kyle. I don’t normally listen to Finebaum, but I found myself riveted this afternoon by the alternating “Ford was whacked by powerful Hoover interests” and “Ford is an idiot” callers. Several callers noted that they had no idea Propst was married, as they had never seen his wife on “Two-a-Days”, and one excused the alleged affair, saying he (of course) didn’t care if Propst “cut an extra slice”. That’s one I haven’t heard before.
June 23rd, 2007 at 10:08 am
Yeah, I remember Hunter Ford was the editor of UAB’s weekly the “Kaleidoscope.” I remember reading week after week his lame ramblings on all things political, sports, and jean colors. I even wrote in a couple times to attempt to counter-balance his supreme idiocy.
I remember seeing Ford on TV one time, working for a consumer advocacy group in Montgomery discussing mandatory arbitration that’s written into insurance contracts. I guess the work ran dry when the group realized that consumers were signing the contracts. Oh well.
Ha ha, the guy’s a borderline celebrity (or he just won’t go away).
June 24th, 2007 at 7:01 pm
I, like C. Wilson, also remember Hunter Ford as editor of the “Kaleidoscope”, UAB’s worthless weekly paper, which I would only use to start a fire or wipe my ass.
June 25th, 2007 at 8:36 am
I remember listening to talk radio here in Birmingham when the story first broke of Hoover High doing the “Two-a-days” show. All the local soccer moms were calling in saying “I think it will be great publicity for our school system” and “we will draw the national attention we deserve”.
Well you drew the national attention all right. Whether Probst had an affair or not isn’t the issue now. His actions and the schools actions have caused a media uproar and non of this reflects highly on the Hoover school system. People need to realize that journalists like Hunter Ford are everywhere out there, constantly looking for someone in the spotlight to make a left turn so they can further their careers. In this case Hunter Ford ended his career, but believe me there’s more like him out there.
June 25th, 2007 at 6:31 pm
the most important figure in this scandal is that of Bishop, the illustrious principle of Hoover U….you want the smoking gun?….he has powder burns on his hands
June 25th, 2007 at 10:29 pm
Mike Rushing is right about the smoking gun, Bishop, but Propst gave him the gun to fire. Extramarital affairs aside, Propst runs the show.. he claims by having people in the right places you can get away with anything, which until Jerry Browning left was true. If you really think about it, the grade changing, paying of star athletes’ apartment rent, placing athletes in non-tenured teachers’ classes to pass them, falsifying expense accounts, sending coaches to spy on other teams, getting money under the table from various suppliers, and on and on really began when Gene Godwin, the school’s former principal passed away. Since that time what has happened? The school board fired a superintendent without cause, right after they gave her a 4 out of 5 positive rating. It is funny how she was fired after board member A.W. Bolt was appointed by the city council to the board. This is the same board that approved Bishop as principal at the recommendation of Propst. Keep in mind to that Hoover’s national superintendent search landed the finance director of the Hoover School System who has no educational background and the judge hired to investigate all of this was recommended by Bolt. If that is not enough to smell of rotten fish, there is plenty more. Remember the hiring of Craig Moss(who coached for Propst) the Parks and Recs director who was not qualified for the position? I will spare you the details, but the president of the Parks and Rec Board is a friend of Popst and now supplies the football team with Championship Rings and Hoover High School with class rings and graduation products at much higher than market prices. I wonder where all of this extra money is going? The hot question seems to be whether Propst is guilty of an affair. According to people in Propst’s own circle that question is the easiest to answer, just ask a certain ex-husband that called into the Finebaum show on Friday or find Stephnee and just ask her. As a side note it is interesting that the kids whose grades were changed were headed to Alabama. It must be a coincidence that Bishop and an assistant principal are huge Alabama fans. Oh yeah, this same assistant has been known to use the Park and Rec Board President’s(mentioned earlier) condo at the beach. Well I guess it remains to be seen if Propst does indeed have the right people in the right places. Oh what a tangled web we weave………….
June 25th, 2007 at 10:40 pm
no waaaaay! I have heard and know some of this same stuff is fact! I thought I was one of the only ones who has seen the big picture..the one shining light is that the superintendent must not be in the Propst corner.. maybe he’ll be the pied piper an lead all of the rats out of town
April 3rd, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Well, I for one think Hunter’s got one hell of a sense of humor. We need more Hunter Fords in this world.