Rudy Giuliani’s son is suing Duke because he was cut from the golf team. At first glance, this would seem cause to rip on 22-year-old Andrew Giuliani for being a baby who’s been protected by his father all his life (even if reality and Andrew’s shaky relationship with his dad shows this to be hardly the case). This news probably makes you think that the younger Giuliani is a typical trust fund kid who cannot cope when real world disappointment arrives.

It turns out this story deserves a little deeper look though.

Because if you look at some of the details from Andrew Giuliani’s lawsuit, it sure looks like Duke has another wacky, blowhard coach on its hands.

Giuliani alleges that Duke coach O.D. Vincent III - who replaced the legendary late Rod Myers last June and didn’t recruit Giuliani - gave him a plethora of ludicrous reasons why he was cutting him. These included the fact that Andrew Giuliani once flipped his putter at his golf bag, drove too fast while leaving the golf course parking lot and get this … played a golf team football game harder than some of his teammates on the golf team felt was necessary.

What makes Vincent III look worse of all though is Andrew Giuliani’s charge that Vincent III ordered other players that felt Giuliani should stay on the team not to talk to him. And told Giuliani not to talk to anyone on the team either.

Is this the coach of a major college program - a grown man as Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy would scream - or a junior high school girl? With apologies to many junior high school girls.

What gives Vincent III the gall to think he has the right to tell college kids who are going to the same university who they can and cannot talk to during their day?

According to Andrew Giuliani’s lawsuit, Vincent III goes on to show more of the type of over-reaching creepiness (minus the alleged sexual harassment element) that eventually got women’s soccer coach Anson Dorrance into trouble at nearby North Carolina years ago. Giuliani states that Vincent III told him that if every other member of the golf team wrote a letter supporting Giuliani being on the team, he’d reinstate him. But if even one teammate declined to write a letter, his dismissal would be permanent.

Again, this is a prominent golf coach? O.D. Vincent III sounds like he fancies himself as the Jeff Probst of his own twisted version of “Survivor” instead.

There are at least two sides to every story and Vincent III hasn’t told his yet - instead doing the typical spineless coach move of hiding behind a university spokesperson. But however bad you may think Rudy Giuliani’s son looks, Duke is once again far from coming out smelling splendid.

Is it a surprise that sports controveries seem to keep happening at Duke? Or is it yet another example of a university that sold its soul to Mike Krzyzewski and the coach is God syndrome that Faker K. produces?

It took some guts for Andrew Giuliani to file this lawsuit too. Because of his last name and who his father is, he had to know it would get much more attention than just another NCAA golfer - and that much of that attention would be negative against him. We haven’t seen anything approaching guts from Duke or O.D. Vincent III yet.

Then again, with Duke, is that really a surprise?

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