College football kicked off this weekend! Well actually, it sort of punched off. The governing body of college football, the NCAA decided it would be a great idea to kick off the season with every member of the team shaking hands before the game. This is supposed to promote sportsmanship throughout the rest of the season (yeah right!). This sportsmanship didn’t even last past the first day. The kickoff game of the 2009 season was played between Boise State & Oregon on Boise States bright blue field. The game began just how the NCAA wanted it to. The two teams shook hands and then played a good game of football. As any competitive person would know, the game got a little heated and tempers flared. By the end of the game the tension was at an all time high.
One of the Boise State players, Byron Hout, decided it was a great idea to taunt one of the Oregon players (who had just lost the game). Hout put his hand on the Oregon player, LeGarrette Blount’s, shoulder & said something bad enough to make the Oregon player punch him square in the jaw. He hit him so hard that the Boise State player fell to the ground (I thought football players were supposed to be able to take hits, but whatever). After hitting him, the player had to be physically restrained by teammates, coaches, & refs. Out of anger, he even hit one of his own teammates. And as he was being escorted to the locker room, he got into a verbal altercation with fans in the stadium. He yelled and made threats toward him. The whole situation was embarrassing for Oregon & frankly all of college football. Needless to say he was punished severely. He will be suspended for the rest of the season, his senior season. He will still keep his scholarship & be able to go to class & still participate in team activities. Now, I do think this punishment is a little bit harsh. I think the NCAA & the team came down a little bit hard because it is the beginning of the season & they wanted to set an example. His actions were wrong and they did set a bad example but the punishment did not fit the crime. Yes, his actions were inexcusable and childish but suspension for the rest of the season is crazy. It’s freaking football! It’s going to get heated, especially in a tough game.
Another problem I have is what happened to the other player who first instigated contact with him. He did not get suspended or face much disciplinary action. He is going to face individual discipline from the team. He instigated this fight and he receives no punishment? Doesn’t seem very fair to me. If the NCAA is going to pretend to be tough then they should at least level punishment fairly. The whole entire fight wouldn’t have happened if this guy just could’ve kept his mouth shut! This guy ruined somebody else’s college football career and he gets no punishment.
I really have a problem with the way the NCAA handled this situation. Yes, Blout’s actions were wrong and inexcusable and he deserves to be punished. But the other person in the situation deserves to be punished as well. I would recommend a 1-2 game suspension, but for some reason this guy is not going to receive any punishment. That’s like self defense in a murder trial. If somebody is coming toward you with force and you are scared for your well being, it is human nature to react first. You react first so that they will not hit or kill you first. That is what Blount was doing when he hit Hout. Every single person on this earth has a threshold. And after something reaches this threshold, they can’t take anymore. They are not in control of their actions anymore; all they can think about is retaliation.
My personal threshold is that I have a low tolerance for stupid things. For example, when people are making excessively loud noise or just people who say stupid things. There is no need for people to say these things. I just feel like they waste everybody’s time and energy by making them listen to these ridiculous things. If you have stupid thoughts, please keep them in your head! This is like a public service announcement to everything. If you think something is stupid, it probably is, so please don’t say it.
But this is really the only thing that makes me angry. I generally have a high threshold. I can sometimes be referred to as a push over. I just like to make sure everybody is happy (my extravagantly handsome friend Nathan Mack with a heart of gold calls me Nanny Mildred because I’m so nice). I care about people and it’s much easier for me to go along with what they say. This is sort of a double edged sword. I end up putting myself last but I end up pleasing all the people around me. They end up happy but I don’t always. But in general I feel good about helping other people! I always had what I wanted growing up so I think I should give back to people who are less fortunate then I am. Some of my friends have had it tough and I don’t mind sacrificing a whole afternoon to help with a yard sale, for example.
Because I am always willing to give back to others, I have excellent friends! We’re always willing to help each other out and I know I can trust them. One of them, Nathan, is sitting next to me right now, keeping me company while I write this blog. My friends are willing to help whenever I need them and I am willing to do the same thing for them. But these have been my same friends from high school. The challenge now that I’m in college is how to make new friends that are as good as the old.
One of the Boise State players, Byron Hout, decided it was a great idea to taunt one of the Oregon players (who had just lost the game). Hout put his hand on the Oregon player, LeGarrette Blount’s, shoulder & said something bad enough to make the Oregon player punch him square in the jaw. He hit him so hard that the Boise State player fell to the ground (I thought football players were supposed to be able to take hits, but whatever). After hitting him, the player had to be physically restrained by teammates, coaches, & refs. Out of anger, he even hit one of his own teammates. And as he was being escorted to the locker room, he got into a verbal altercation with fans in the stadium. He yelled and made threats toward him. The whole situation was embarrassing for Oregon & frankly all of college football. Needless to say he was punished severely. He will be suspended for the rest of the season, his senior season. He will still keep his scholarship & be able to go to class & still participate in team activities. Now, I do think this punishment is a little bit harsh. I think the NCAA & the team came down a little bit hard because it is the beginning of the season & they wanted to set an example. His actions were wrong and they did set a bad example but the punishment did not fit the crime. Yes, his actions were inexcusable and childish but suspension for the rest of the season is crazy. It’s freaking football! It’s going to get heated, especially in a tough game.
Another problem I have is what happened to the other player who first instigated contact with him. He did not get suspended or face much disciplinary action. He is going to face individual discipline from the team. He instigated this fight and he receives no punishment? Doesn’t seem very fair to me. If the NCAA is going to pretend to be tough then they should at least level punishment fairly. The whole entire fight wouldn’t have happened if this guy just could’ve kept his mouth shut! This guy ruined somebody else’s college football career and he gets no punishment.
I really have a problem with the way the NCAA handled this situation. Yes, Blout’s actions were wrong and inexcusable and he deserves to be punished. But the other person in the situation deserves to be punished as well. I would recommend a 1-2 game suspension, but for some reason this guy is not going to receive any punishment. That’s like self defense in a murder trial. If somebody is coming toward you with force and you are scared for your well being, it is human nature to react first. You react first so that they will not hit or kill you first. That is what Blount was doing when he hit Hout. Every single person on this earth has a threshold. And after something reaches this threshold, they can’t take anymore. They are not in control of their actions anymore; all they can think about is retaliation.
My personal threshold is that I have a low tolerance for stupid things. For example, when people are making excessively loud noise or just people who say stupid things. There is no need for people to say these things. I just feel like they waste everybody’s time and energy by making them listen to these ridiculous things. If you have stupid thoughts, please keep them in your head! This is like a public service announcement to everything. If you think something is stupid, it probably is, so please don’t say it.
But this is really the only thing that makes me angry. I generally have a high threshold. I can sometimes be referred to as a push over. I just like to make sure everybody is happy (my extravagantly handsome friend Nathan Mack with a heart of gold calls me Nanny Mildred because I’m so nice). I care about people and it’s much easier for me to go along with what they say. This is sort of a double edged sword. I end up putting myself last but I end up pleasing all the people around me. They end up happy but I don’t always. But in general I feel good about helping other people! I always had what I wanted growing up so I think I should give back to people who are less fortunate then I am. Some of my friends have had it tough and I don’t mind sacrificing a whole afternoon to help with a yard sale, for example.
Because I am always willing to give back to others, I have excellent friends! We’re always willing to help each other out and I know I can trust them. One of them, Nathan, is sitting next to me right now, keeping me company while I write this blog. My friends are willing to help whenever I need them and I am willing to do the same thing for them. But these have been my same friends from high school. The challenge now that I’m in college is how to make new friends that are as good as the old.
WOW...I did not realize all of that happened with the football game. That was very informative. Yeah everyone has the little things that pushes their buttons. lol
ReplyDeleteyou gotta hate that punch that was thrown cause its just unsportsmanlike conduct. i was glad to hear that he apologized tho despite being suspended for the season.
ReplyDeleteGosh, Lauren you're just like the guys, talking about sports. It's cool though, I saw that punch go down while eating lunch. It was intense.
ReplyDelete