There has been a public relations nightmare brewing in Iowa City for the past four years, and his name is Pierre Pierce. When Pierce committed to Iowa in 2001, he was supposed to be the leader of the Steve Alford era. He was supposed to be one of the greatest players in the history of Iowa basketball.

Pierce will go down in history, all right, but as the biggest embarrassment in the history of the program.

Yes, Pierce has been in the news again this past week for yet another sexual assault accusation. A lot of people in the state of Iowa are asking if he should have gotten kicked off of the team. Truthfully, he shouldn’t have been let back on the team in the first place.

Unless you just moved to the state, you know about Pierce’s past troubles with the ladies and the law. Two years ago, Pierce was accused of sexual assault and he ended up sitting out a season before Alford decided to give him another chance.

My problem with how Alford handled the situation is this: It’s not like Pierce got caught stealing a box of Twinkies from Casey’s. He was the subject of an investigation into sexual assault — one of the most pathetic, violent crimes a person can commit. But instead of kicking Pierce off the team and saving the thousands of fans Iowa basketball lost, Alford took the gamble on Pierce. What does Pierce do to repay his loyal coach? He does the same gutless junk all over again.

What was going through Pierce’s head when he drove to Des Moines — in the middle of the week — and did whatever he did to his “girlfriend”? He obviously wasn’t thinking about his team or his future, and he obviously wasn’t using his head. Congrats Pierre, you not only ruined your basketball career, you’ve lost any dignity you may have had as a human being.

The future looks bleak for the Iowa basketball program. Pierce has dragged the program’s name through the mud on a local and national level, and Alford will be held accountable. Barring a shocking end to the season, Iowa will fail to make the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in the six-year Alford era.

Under Alford, Iowa’s teams have had a steady theme to just about every season. They win some nice games early, munch on some cupcakes, choke in Big 10 play and then make a run at the Big 10 tourney only to come up short of an NCAA bid.

I’m sorry, Steve, but a poor coaching record and dragging the program through the mud won’t cut it.

This whole thing could end up being positive for the young, once-promising coach Alford. If he gets canned at Iowa this season, it’s very possible he would return to his alma mater, Indiana, where fans will worship the ground he walks on, something Iowa fans now refuse to do.

The good news is we won’t have to hear about Pierre Pierce anymore; his NBA hopes are now about as sure as Alford’s future at Iowa. At least neither of them will be lonely, because they’re likely going out together.