Larry Eust-achy has resigned as Iowa State basketball coach this week. He will probably be forgotten in a couple of weeks, and most likely will not be able to find another job in the next few years.

In case you haven’t heard, Eustachy was caught at a fraternity party and pictures were taken with him kissing two girls and signing autographs, all while being heavily intoxicated. The pictures were subsequently shown on the Internet and his job was suddenly in jeopardy.

But unlike most, who feel he’s just blowing sunshine in our faces by stating that he has a problem, I feel stronger towards the idea that maybe he deserves a second chance. He was forced to resign a job he didn’t have to give up.

The Iowa State athletics director, Bruce Van De Velde, has said he doesn’t want Eustachy back, and his reasons are valid.

“As you are aware, I have been evaluating Coach Larry Eustachy’s status as Cyclone’s men’s basketball coach … as Coach Eustachy said, he exercised poor judgement that has resulted in a profound embarrassment to the men’s basketball program,” said Van De Velde in a statement released on April 30.

But what Van De Velde doesn’t realize is that Eustachy was really performing his duties anyway.

Iowa State Daily managing editor Megan Hinds, who covered the team last season and who has a unique opinion to those at the university, sent me Eustachy’s contract. In his contract, it states, under the terms of added compensation aside from performing duties as coach, that he must also perform “a reasonable amount of public appearances” for which he would be paid $342,000-plus.

Van De Velde doesn’t think Eustachy could possibly recruit anymore based on his latest drinking problem. He feels the parents of the prospective ballplayers wouldn’t feel comfortable sending their kids to play under a guy who is less of a role model than J. Edgar Hoover.

Van De Velde also felt that his head coach violated his coach privileges and believed that his head man was tarnishing, not only the image of himself, but also the image of Iowa State.

Van De Velde may have a point. It may be harder for Eustachy to recruit guys. And, if anything, Eustachy has probably violated a code of ethics that is linked to being head coach of a Division-1 basketball program, especially if you’ve taken your team to the Elite-8.

But I’m going to take the high road and, unfortunately, agree with ESPN analyst Dick Vitale.

Hey Iowa State: Don’t fire Eustachy!!

Larry may not have the proper conduct here, but this guy hasn’t done this on a regular basis. In fact, I know this was his first offense.

Take out the fact that he might have crossed the line by signing autographs while his hands were elsewhere (hint, hint). I don’t condone the behavior, and neither does his wife, who has taken the hard route by giving Eustachy the boot. Or at least the price of a decent hotel room.

The fans and players are sticking up for him.

“A lot of people are protesting the firing,” said Hinds. “The players are behind him. Van De Velde doesn’t seem to be a popular guy right now.”

Hinds also pointed out that Van De Velde hired Iowa State football coach Dan McCarney after McCarney had been accused of domestic abuse to his wife.

Hey, Van De Velde, Eustachy didn’t sleep with your wife, nor did he blow up your mailbox as a childish prank. He didn’t tell you off in your office, hit a player, throw a chair or conduct himself anyway other than the way he has been on the court. He bleeds Iowa State colors. He needs detox therapy. He needs to dry out. But most importantly, he needs the support of an athletic director that is unwilling to give it to him.

Seems to me there should be more research done into the coach’s personal life. That way Van De Velde wouldn’t look so bad when he forces his coaches, coaches that he hired, to resign. Hey, Van De Velde, if you ever have a drinking problem or some other addiction, let’s make sure Eustachy could fire you for it.

In the Locker room:

It does seem that Northeastern has done a lot of research in recent years on picking coaches. Don Brown and Ron Everhart should be coaches of the year, with Brown already winning the Atlantic-10 last season and Everhart’s group on the way up … Still looking for people to write in their favorite sports moment of the past five years. I have had about a dozen people write in, but I need more!!

Andy Cuneo may be reached at [email protected]