It was educational, although uncomfortable, when the moment hit the other day and revealed the disturbing truth:

I was wrong.

Nothing like a slice of penitent pastry (humble pie) to go with the morning coffee. But accommodating new evidence and changing circumstances is a necessity on the road to better self-awareness.

And so in the wake of the recent Juwan Howard/Greg Gard kerfuffle, I've come to realize my stance on postgame handshake lines has been a swing and a miss for quite some time.

Full disclosure: I've written many times about getting rid of them. I find them bigger on image than substance. It looks like good sportsmanship, sure. But good sportsmanship requires sincerity, not what we normally see: a conga line of "g'game, g'game, g'game," slapping hands with heads down or eyes elsewhere.

Legislated goodwill is phony.

But something didn't sit right listening and reading some pundits in recent days. Their response to the Michigan/Wisconsin brawl is to end postgame handshake lines. It reeks of treating the symptom and not the disease. I realize I've been guilty of the same thing.

It took the words of Michigan State coach Tom Izzo to awaken me. Izzo spoke earlier this week to the media about his support for the postgame handshake line. Near the end, he suggested we start teaching kids how to shake hands. Here is the transcript:

"We've already taught these poor 18-year-olds that when you're told to go to class and you don't like it, you can leave. We've already told these kids that if you're not happy, you can do something else.

"And now we're going to tell them to not man up and walk down a line to someone who's kicked your butt and have enough class to shake their hand is utterly ridiculous. We're already teaching these kids nothing. (These) are the moments when I think you learn the most about people.

"Not shaking hands, that's typical of our country right now. Instead of solving the problem, let's make an excuse and let's see if we can just, instead of confronting and demanding that it changes, let's eliminate it so that we don't have those problems. The people saying it are the same people who don't want to teach the players about accountability and respect. How about we do this:

"My buddy (Steve) Mariucci, when he got the San Francisco 49er job, practiced how to go from the locker room to the field, how they'd tuck their helmets under their arm during the national anthem. Maybe we should teach people how to shake hands."

It is a brilliant idea. Remember: A handshake does not necessarily symbolize good sportsmanship. A handshake symbolizes good sportsmanship when both parties mean it. Some kids are growing up with the legislated act of the postgame handshake — hand slapping in the conga line — not really having any idea of its importance or essence.

So let's channel our inner Izzo and teach them. A handshake has value when two people engage in eye contact and some level of meaningful communication. If Mariucci could teach professional athletes how and where to stand for the national anthem, we ought to be able to teach kids the proper technique for the postgame handshake line.

It's not difficult. A coach or athletic director oversees. Kids walk through the line slowly, not like they're trying to steal second base. They maintain eye contact with each opponent. They enunciate "good game" or "nice job" or something in that family. Rinse. Repeat.

I realize the roll-your-eyes crowd won't like this. Far too many people walk around as if they wrote the manual on sportsmanship. (Race relations and COVID as well, I suspect.) But postgame fights that happen in handshake lines are a product of our eroding communication skills that fuel more societal volatility.

I say let's enact a plan where handshakes are practiced and taught. Maybe something positive comes from Sunday's ugliness after all.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro