No matter what people say, there really is no place like home.

So I can understand Ben… No matter what people say, there really is no place like home.

So I can understand Ben Howland’s desire to coach at UCLA. He grew up in California, rooting for the Bruins and admiring legendary coach John Wooden.

It wouldn’t matter how much I liked Pittsburgh, or any other city I could someday be working in, I would jump at the opportunity to go home because it’s just that: home.

No matter what you do in life, your parents are always going to be your parents.

So I can understand why Howland wanted to work at a school that’s just 90 minutes from where his folks live. The fact that his father has been ill recently makes me sympathize even more.

Last summer, my family found out that my father had an illness that at first appeared to be life-threatening. For weeks, I wondered if I would ever see him again after I left for Pitt in August and I considered not coming back to school if it was that bad.

But it turned out to be less serious than it could have been and my dad is just fine.

No matter how much money you make, it’s not worth it if you’re not happy.

So I can understand why Howland went to UCLA for less money than he would have made at Pitt.

It’s not like the coach and his family are going to be living on the street, I mean $900,000 a year plus incentives is a pretty decent amount of money.

But what I don’t understand is why Howland handled the situation the way he did.

By lying to the players and administrators, not to mention the Pittsburgh media and fans, Howland dragged his name and image through the mud to the point that it may not be safe for him to set foot in Pittsburgh again.

And what happens if UCLA fires him, which it just might do if he doesn’t win a national title in the very near future?

If I were the athletics director at a Division I school, I wouldn’t trust him to take over as my head coach. I wouldn’t even trust him to bring in my mail.

While it has to be tough on the fans, the ones who are hurt most by this are the players, especially Julius Page and Toree Morris.

They both came here to play for Howland and now that he’s gone, they don’t have the option of transferring. At least the younger guys, along with the recruits, have enough eligibility left to consider it.

During the course of a 30- or 40-game season, the players went to war for Howland and had to trust his every word. To have someone break that trust, especially the way he did, has to be heartbreaking.

Joe Marchilena is the assistant sports editor of The Pitt News and he plans on fulfilling his “contract.” Trust him.