It was chance. Bad luck.

The university had just purchased the house on Buchanan Boulevard and 11 others, on Feb. 28, in an effort to help "stabilize the neighborhood."

So just because a third of the lacrosse team players had been arrested in connection with "Animal House"-type behavior, don't get the impression that Duke was hosting some kind of wild quasi-fraternity.

Duke wasn't hosting -- but it wasn't doing much to shut it down, either.

In a conversation Friday afternoon with John Burness, Duke's senior vice president for public affairs (aka the man in charge of Duke's image), I learned that the university was fully aware of the antics of its lacrosse team before the sensational gang-rape investigation.

Burness said that Durham police had been asked to inform the university when its students were arrested in town. The charges then were dealt with in the student court system.

So yes, Duke officials were aware.

They were aware of the neighbors' complaints in Trinity Park about loud parties and rowdy behavior.

They were aware of those past charges against the players. (Although, to be fair, the charges against 15 players came in dribs and drabs over two years.)

And they were aware of the lacrosse team's general reputation. It's no coincidence Tom Wolfe chose lacrosse players as the most vile characters in his depiction of life at "Dupont University." (Gothic campus, you got the picture.)

Unfortunately, the university's awareness did not translate into action.

In fact, at a press conference last week, and then in a TV interview on MSNBC, Duke President Richard Brodhead and Burness, respectively, made remarks that seemed to suggest that the earlier charges against the lacrosse players were your standard college student antics. Drunk and disorderly, public urination, we've all done it -- right?

On Friday, Burness assured me that both he and Brodhead were only trying to distinguish between the hiring of strippers and serving of alcohol to minors -- which was "stupid and boorish" -- and "something as horrific as sexual assault and rape."

Well, duh.

My point was that, whatever comes of the rape allegations, the lacrosse team was widely known to be out of control long before those allegations were ever made.

Instead of stabilizing neighborhoods, Duke might want to first stabilize its student-athletes; you know, the ones who are supposed to be role models?

Upholding Duke's standards, Burness said, was lacrosse coach Mike Pressler's responsibility.

So dump him.

Because the coach and athletic director Joe Alleva are the university's responsibility.

After all, I asked Burness, do you think Coach K would allow this sort of behavior from his basketball players?

Of course not.

Owning the home where a lacrosse team party careens into hell may be a quirk.

But having a team that behaves responsibly and honorably happens only by design.