Grand Valley State University has suspended Morris Berger, the football program's offensive coordinator, after he told the schoolās student newspaper that heād like to have dinner with Adolf Hitler.
The Division II school in Allendale, Mich., announced Berger's hiring Jan. 20. In an interview with The Lanthorn three days later, sports editor Kellen Voss asked Berger, who majored in history at Drury University in Missouri, with which three historical figures he would most like to have dinner.
āThis is probably not going to get a good review, but Iām going to say Adolf Hitler,ā Berger told the paper. āIt was obviously very sad and he had bad motives, but the way he was able to lead was second-to-none. How he rallied a group and a following, I want to know how he did that. Bad intentions of course, but you canāt deny he wasnāt [sic] a great leader.ā
In addition to the notorious Nazi leader, Berger selected John F. Kennedy and Christopher Columbus as his preferred historical dinner companions.
As reported by Sports Illustrated, the school announced Monday that Berger has been suspended, pending an investigation.
āThe comments made by Offensive Coordinator Morris Berger, as reported in The Lanthorn student newspaper, do not reflect the values of Grand Valley State University,ā the university declared in a statement. āBerger has been suspended and the university is conducting a thorough investigation.ā
Berger joined GVSU from Texas State, where he served as tight ends coach for one year, SI reported. He had previously been an offensive quality control coach at Oklahoma State and a graduate assistant at Missouri and Missouri Western. In addition to his bachelorās degree in history from Drury, Berger also holds a masterās in educational psychology from Missouri.
