Chris Beard's Kind Gesture is a Good Reminder of Humanity in Sports: Just a Minute

The Ole Miss basketball coach wrote Charles Bediako a note after a court ruling went against the Alabama center.

Feb 11, 2026; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Chris Beard looks on during the first half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at The Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Welcome to BamaCentral’s "Just a Minute," a video series featuring BamaCentral's Alabama beat writers. Multiple times per week, the writers will group up or film solo to provide their take on a topic concerning the Crimson Tide or the landscape of college sports.

Watch the above video as BamaCentral assistant editor Katie Windham talks about what Ole Miss basketball head coach Chris Beard's kind gesture to Charles Bediako reminded her of about the power of sports.

Alabama head coach Nate Oats took time out of his postgame press conference after the Crimson Tide's road win at Ole Miss on Wednesday night to acknowledge one of the "classiest moves" he's seen from an opposing head coach.

Ole Miss head coach Chris Beard called Oats before the game to ask if center Charles Bediako was going to travel with the team and also wrote Bediako a note of encouragement for Oats to deliever after Bediako's eligibility was denied in court on Monday. Beard explained his thought process during his press conference.

"It's a personal deal," Beard said. "I think I was just thinking about Charles as a human being. I don't know him. Seen him play a lot of basketball. He's a good player. I have no dog in the fight in terms of the whole situation, but I do know there's a human being involved and watching some of the stuff that was going on at the games and things.

"Just as many people have to me, in my life when I go through adversity and tough times, I think as human beings, we can encourage other people. Doesn't always have to be someone you know. It was a personal thing, but I was just writing Charles, the human being, a letter to let him know that a lot of people out there are pulling for him.

After Alabama player Charles Bediako was denied an injunction and barred from continuing at Alabama, Nate Oats said Chris Beard passed along a note of encouragement to deliver to Bediako.

Beard explains why: pic.twitter.com/78wg2eijLt

— Sam Hutchens (@Sam_Hutchens_) February 12, 2026

As someone who spends a lot of time around sports for my job, it can be really easy to lose site of the humanity involved. People turn into subjects and stories. Fans can quickly view players as characters on TV and forget they are just 18 to 23-year-old kids competing on a huge stage with a ton of pressure.

Sometimes, it's good to step back and put things in perspective. Most of us don't do a job on a public stage. Our failures and mistakes are witnessed by very few and likely reported on by none. Yes, it's true that these athletes are now getting paid a lot of money to play for their universities, but it doesn't make them any less human, and I appreciate Beard for giving us that reminder.