The Rabbit Hunter reply

The fact that Frank Deford is my favorite sports journalist should not be overlooked when reading my response, I listen to him on NPR habitually. My opinion is anything but unbiased, Deford is unlike any other sports reporter besides Dave Zirin, who works for The Nation. The reason for my admiration for these writers is how they consistently present stories, often which are mainstream, in a completely different light challenging readers to speculate about a story on a level beyond what is obvious or comfortable.

The writing in "The Rabbit Hunter," and other articles by Deford, is fresh and uncommitted to making a definition of Bob Knight. Although, his opinion seems to be somewhat present in sections of the writing, he counters even the points he appears to be on the side of with ideas and quotes that prove the opposite. For every factor about Bob Knight that makes you cringe, there is an opposing positive side to his attitude or action. He seems to be guiding us through the story like a good writer should, but proving that nothing is as clear cut and obvious on the surface. In this way he forces a reader to adjust perception within the article over and over again and actually question their own feelings on more than just Bob Knight and his coaching.

Organization within the essay for me was fine, because it began and ended with the main point of the story, the hunting of rabbits getting in the way of the elephants that can kill you and whether Bob Knight suffered from this syndrome he coached against. The organization did not bother me, but I can see the problem people had differentiating between the old people and coaches sections. For me however it was vital that the old people section followed coaches because much of it was explaining his overwhelming connection to coaches of all sports. The section on women had to come before the ending so there was some kind of introduction to Nancy Knight and not only their relationship, but the way he feels about girlfriends of players and women in a general sense.

The article was successful for me because of the continued reflection on the early instances referred to at the beginning of the story. In each of the sections a bit more of either the Puerto Rico incident or another instance was explained, but the article continued, for me, to create almost more questions to ponder, putting the responsibility on the reader, instead of giving a more straightforward definition of Bobby Knight.