By Mark La Monica
This week's short list of sports figures who, if we operated in a meritocracy, would be forced to return a portion of their game checks for sub-par performances.
1) Rich Rodriguez
With nothing to do but beat an extremely inferior team in order to secure a berth in the national championship game, West Virginia crumbled like a cookie dunked in a milk for a few too many seconds. How did Rodriguez, the Mountaineers' head coach, let that happen? It's "Jessica Biel is sitting next to me right now and I'm blogging instead" unfathomable to imagine how West Virginia, begging for legitimacy in an overhyped Big East conference, could tank it like this. Coach Rodriguez should have to make his own car payments for a few months and the players should have to give back their meal plan money next semester.
2) Cam Cameron
This has nothing to do with leading the Dolphins to an 0-12 start to the season, and everything to do with letting the Jets hang 40 points on his team. That's just plain awful. In their previous four games this season, the Jets had amassed a total of 45 points. Cam Cameron is making Tony D'Amato look like a genius.
3) Isiah Thomas
The Knicks coach/GM/team president may earn a permanent spot on this list, sort of like how Norm always sat on the same stool in "Cheers." This time, Isiah should throw a few bucks back to Jimmy Dolan for that 45-point loss/embarrassment to the Celtics. It would have been even worse had Nate Robinson not hit a half-court three at the buzzer.
4) Omar Minaya
Since the media soured on Lastings Milledge this past season, few people raised a stink when Mets GM traded the five-tool prospect for the equivalent of dinner for four at Cipriani's and a year's subscription to Esquire, GQ, ESPN.com Insider and Entertainment Weekly. Consider who Minaya got in return for the most hyped Met prospect in years: Brian Schneider and Ryan Church. Consider who Minaya could have had if he decided he didn't like Milledge before this season: Manny Ramirez, Dan Haren or Dontrelle Willis.
Note: Any other week, Joe Gibbs would top the list for turning the Bills' game-winning 51-yard field goal into a 36-yarder by calling a second timeout. However, Gibbs gets a pass this week because of Sean Taylor.
Send us your nominees this week for next week's edition.
Paybacks appears every Tuesday. Read previous editions of Paybacks.