One of these days, we'll wake up to see that athletes and the people who coach them are no better or worse than the rest of us. They're just jocks. Subject to the same tilt-a-whirl of emotions. Capable, now and then, of doing dumb things.

We will take these people off the pedestals we've built for them. When they screw up, we won't be so stunned and judgmental. We'll limit our sanctimonious huffing to a few regretful sighs. Until then, we'll rip Miami football a new one.

"We've got a lot of making up to do," RedHawks coach Terry Hoeppner said Thursday.

Really? Why?

One Miami coach, defensive coordinator Jon Wauford, supposedly decked a Marshall fan on the field after Tuesday's game. Another, Taver Johnson, vented his anger by busting up the coaches' box. Allegedly.

Here is what should happen: Wauford should apologize. Johnson should pay for what he broke. End of story.

Instead, because we are preoccupied with sports, we've given this episode undue attention. Hoeppner suspended both coaches, "for perception's sake, and to hold them to the same high standards I hold the players," he said. The school's internal investigation continues. Probably, the decked fan will have something legal to say. And, oh, dear, what about Miami's image?

Wauford was wrong. Johnson was wrong. Miami has already said it would pay for the busted-up box. And if the fan weren't on the field where he didn't belong, Wauford couldn't have pushed him. Allegedly. As frustrated as he was, Jon Wauford probably didn't jog across the sod saying, "I'm going to haul off and whack the first Marshall fan I see."

Storming fields and gym floors is a college preoccupation now, spearheaded by students who think their tickets come with a moron license and a pass to celebrate any damned way they please. Note to Joe College: You are there to watch the game, not take part.

It's surprising a player hasn't gotten into it with a fan. Imagine playing with a controlled rage for three hours, losing a close game, then running off to shouts of "You suck!" from semi-sober undergrads who've never worn a helmet. Most of us don't have to exercise that sort of self-control.

We want to hold coaches and athletes to the same workplace-civility standards we follow. Some who are incurably naive believe coaches and jocks ought to behave better than the rest of us. They're role models, don't you know.

Yet if a coach acted in our offices the way he does in his, he'd be fired before noon. Yelling and screaming are signs of instability everywhere but a sideline. There, they demonstrate "passion." Still, we're shocked when a couple Miami assistants cross the line one time. The Self Righteous League saw an easy mark and took aim. The incident sends the wrong message about character.

No, it doesn't. It says two men lost their cool. It says colleges need to police their fans if their fans can't police themselves.

"I run a tight ship," Hoeppner said. There is no reason to doubt him. "We do it the right way. We want to be in the right place at the right time. Until (Tuesday) we were for a long time. Right now, we're starting a new string."

Here's hoping fans do as well. Stay in the stands, where you belong. You keep sports in perspective. Miami will fix Marshall's coaches box. The world will keep turning.