Ed Podolak 'Retires' From Iowa Gig After Enjoying Women, Beer

Hawkeye football announcer Ed Podolak likes Budweiser and, er, the inside of ladies' shirts. As you can see above, there's now photographic proof thanks to some Iowa State fan who took the above photo and a couple others and posted them to the Internet.

This is trouble for Podolak because the Internet goes "hur boob" and massively replicates photos like this. They spread outward from the origin point, reached the athletic department, and spurred the inevitable overreaction:

I've got a second confirmation. Iowa radio football analyst and legendary Hawkeye Ed Podolak will retire from the booth in the wake of post-Outback Bowl bar photos. An announcement from the University of Iowa could come as early as today.

"Retire" in this case is obvious whitewashing: Dude got fired.

The most immediate comparison that leaps to mind is Larry Eustachy crashing a frat party, but that was egregious in ways this isn't. Podolak isn't in charge of a bunch of college-age athletes (Why won't anyone think of the children?). The lady in question isn't 20 and seems to be having a good time. Podolak isn't a grown man drinking Natty Lite. All he's doing is flirting with a receptive female at a bar.

Aren't we past this by now? The once-shameful private lives of people are now plastered all over Facebook, and at any time you can be photographed committing a slight indiscretion. The correct response to the new situation is to shrug your shoulders and say, "Oh well." Don't fire the guy.

I'm reminded of an old Bloom County in which Opus has been driven from his home by evangelical rodents. When this is met with a "let he who is without sin cast the first stone," Portnoy (the groundhog) replies "yeah, and we cast that first mutha." In a word: lame.

By the way: I'd like to personally congratulate Jay Christensen of The Wizard of Odds, by the way, for posting these photos in a bid for cheap hits and costing a guy even Iowa State fans think is pretty awesome his job. Good work there. You've contributed greatly to the national discourse of college football with this. Love the utter lack of remorse in the follow up.