A common stereotype among elderly southerners, and maybe elderly people in general, is the grandmother or grandfather who says what they want, when they want... even if it's offensive.
They like to reminisce about the good ol' days when life was simpler, people made sense and everything fit in to neat categories.
However, their recollections usually reflect a time when racism and gender inequality were the way the world worked -- the harsh reality of those neat categories.
Pat Dye is the Auburn Family's misguided grandfather.
We love him; he's done a lot for the family, but he also says things that make us cringe.
Dye's comments on Condoleezza Rice's appointment to the new College Football Playoff committee during an interview on the Oct. 7 edition of WJOX's "The Morning Drive," were completely asinine.
They are the words of an old man from a generation that thinks women should only function in the domestic capability. It's doubtful Dye is an outright chauvinist with an anti-woman agenda, but what he said was wrong.
Unfortunately, the embarrassment doesn't just land on Dye.
Even though his words are solely his own, he is a representative of the Auburn family -- one of our de facto patriarchs.
So, his lack of verbal control makes us look bad.
Dye's comments reinforce the patriarchy that has long plagued college sports. His sentiments echo the prevailing mode of operation before Title IX.
You may think we are reading too much in to what he said.
But think about what would have happened if Paul Finebaum were appointed to the College Football Playoff committee.
Nothing.
Despite the fact his resume is less impressive than Rice's, despite the fact he has probably never taken a tackle, the reaction to his appointment would be minimal.
His gender would never be an issue, nor would it reflect poorly on his qualifications for the job.
Rice has accomplished a lot.
Even if you don't agree with her political allegiances, it's hard to deny her prowess as an individual who know how to work hard and achieve.
It comes down to the age-old stereotype of girls being bad at, or not caring about, sports, which Dye seems to treat as gospel truth.
If Rice is as big a sports fan as she claims to be, then we see no problem with her sitting on the committee. We think she can use her non-football related work experience to bring some much needed objectivity to the fledgling playoff system.
The good ol' days are over, and although we still struggle with racism and gender inequality, we don't have to play along anymore.
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