This summer, the world of professional sports has been hit with a bad rap.

First of all, we have to deal with Barry Bonds as he attempts to break Hank Aaron's home-run record. If the rumors that Bonds used drugs to attain this extraordinary success are found out to be true all along, & he should happen to pass Aaron on the all-time home runs list, his accomplishments thus far would become illegitimate & MLB commissioner Bud Selig's having enough trouble going to sleep just thinking about the whole situation.

Secondly, in the NFL, we've got Michael Vick who is indicted on charges that he orchestrated a dogfighting ring which treated sub-par performers with unspeakable cruelty...for those who love dogs as much as I do, treating your animals like Vick & his cohorts did is plain unacceptable & downright callous. Include Pacman Jones in the mix as well, along with those other NFL players who are always slipping up with law enforcement.

Finally, in the NBA, we've got a referee accused of hobnobbing with gamblers.

Through it all, we should be grateful that someone like Tony Dungy has maintained his integrity & dignity in an otherwise dark time for professional sports. With my beloved Indianapolis Colts, he has won consistently & given us plenty of reason to love him not only as one of the NFL's most awesome/respected head coaches but as a fellow Hoosier. This isn't to say that his road to success with Indy has been a cakewalk:

Like a modern-day Job, Dungy has endured every trial & tribulation you can think of: first of all, he was fired as head coach of the Tampa Bay Bucs; but this crisis would pale in comparison to what would happen a few years later, when his son committed suicide. After such a personal tragedy, Dungy didn't cry "Retreat!" He didn't say, "I can't cope." Instead, he helped other parents cope with the loss of their children to suicide. And through it all, Tony Dungy kept his faith. At the same time, it only grew stronger.

Not only has Tony Dungy held strong to his integrity & dignity; he has given the youth of our day a role model they can look up to. In the world of sports, even more so this summer, it seems that there are no real idols to look up to, much less emulate. Yet the Colts & especially Tony Dungy have given us hope at a time when shame seems to be ruling the headlines of every sports page around.

And for that, we should be proud that Dungy is continuing to offer rays of hope without all the superfluous fanfare we're used to hearing these days.