When accusations like those emanating from Lawrence and Lubbock begin to hit newsstands, the “Grumpy Old Men” invariably come out of the woodwork.

You know the type. They walked 10 miles uphill in the snow to school. They ate sawdust soup because it was all they had. Their parents beat them silly for putting their elbows on the table.

(And they liked it!)

When it comes to sports, they love to remind everyone how godawful their coaches were to them. Imagine the Junction Boys in hell. Being forced to stand in an electrical closet for a couple hours and doing bear crawls on scorching AstroTurf are nothing compared to the abuse they recall suffering for screwing up.

(And they liked it!)

They never feel the need to explain why the Good Old Days were so great, though.

The mere fact that coaches had more leeway back in the day to treat their charges like shit doesn’t make it right today. That’s like justifying racism by arguing that it was socially acceptable 60 years ago.

Look, I hate to break the news to all the bitter old fogies out there, but change happens for a reason. More often than not, it represents progress.

This is not to say Mike Leach and Mark Mangino deserved to be fired. I have no idea what really transpired in either case. Both deserve due process.

I’m also not trying to excuse helicopter parenting. If Craig James’ motives in raising a ruckus are motivated by his son not seeing enough playing time, ruining Leach’s career in the process is despicable.

However, the mere fact that coaches are starting to land in hot water over these allegations of player mistreatment is a step forward.

Successful college football coaches make millions of dollars thanks to the free labor of their players. Granted, college athletes receive an opportunity to ply their trade and receive an education. Yet, that doesn’t mean they’ve chosen a life of indentured servitude.

The Grumpy Old Men won’t hesitate to let you know that Bear Bryant must be spinning in his grave right now.

Fine by me.