What in the world is wrong with athletes these days and can someone please buy these guys a vowel? I understand that displacement sometimes comes with fame and fortune but just because you cash a hundred thousand dollar check every week doesn’t mean you should lose your sense of decency, assuming of course, you had some in the first place.
Let’s take a brief look at the week that forever changed the lives of Riley Cooper, Terrence Jones and Ryan Braun.
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Riley Cooper apparently likes him some country music, just not black people, which makes him the perfect fit for most country music concerts, however, not a fit for most NFL locker rooms considering the racial makeup of those locker rooms is diametrically opposed to, let’s say, the crowd at your average Travis Tritt show. When we see Mr. Cooper get his clock cleaned this fall, we’ll harken back to a June Kenny Chesney concert and know exactly why.
While all the details remain undisclosed, Riley Cooper apparently got into a verbal altercation with an African-American security guard at said Kenny Chesney concert. The inebriated Cooper was captured on video telling a crowd of friends that he would “jump that fence and fight every n***** here.”
I can’t be the only one thinking they should have just let him.
As an alumnus of the University of Florida, I once rooted for Riley Cooper, just as I did Aaron Hernandez. Continuing to do so has become virtually impossible, not to mention unjustifiable, as Hernandez, an accused murderer, will likely never play anything but prison ball for the rest of his life and Cooper, after his far too casual and comfortable use of a racial slur, will soon get beheaded on the gridiron. Riley’s not the first white guy to drop an N-bomb at a country music concert but he became the first, high-profile athlete to be caught doing so on camera. Long and arduous is the path that leads to forgiveness.
Furthermore, after getting caught using the N-word, why do white people always come up with the increasingly lame “I’ve never said that word before” defense? We saw how well that worked for Paula Dean. Cooper would be better off just telling the truth and seeking professional help for his ignorance and intolerance, not to mention his drinking problem. We’d still view these people differently but at least we’d respect them for telling the truth. Besides, if you’ve ever recited an Eddie Murphy or Dave Chappelle routine, or sang any Notorious BIG or Snoop Dogg lyrics, then you’ve said the N-word. The question is whether you said it out of spite.
Speaking of lying, Ryan Braun is pursuing his post-graduate career at the Pete Rose/Alex Rodriguez Institute for Honesty and Virtue. Mired in what is now a twenty-five year struggle with drug use in its sport, debate rages over whether Ryan Braun, your 2011 National League MVP, should have that award stripped from him. After all, he did fail a drug test. We think. Major League Baseball hasn’t really confirmed that yet.
Braun has subsequently gone into hiding, wisely refusing to address the media. He will, in time, just as a disingenuously apologetic Riley Cooper did on Wednesday. The jury is out as to whether any of us will still care. Or maybe baseball should just come up with a new award, the MVPED, and get this all over with.
And then there’s Terrence Jones, a basketball player I’ve never heard of before. Thanks to his extra-curricular activity outside a Portland nightclub, we’ve heard of him now. Jones averaged 5.5 points in 15 minutes a game over 19 games for the Houston Rockets last year. He was recently arrested for stomping on the legs of a sleeping, homeless man who got in his way. Hey, at least he got us talking about a Rocket other than Dwight Howard.
Jones’ actions, along with those of Braun and Cooper, are yet another reason we sports fans are becoming increasingly disillusioned with the professional athlete. It will take more than a few idiots to cause us to entirely lose faith in the games we grew up watching but those idiots, and the actions that keep them in the news, are becoming more commonplace and more reprehensible.
How much longer will we buy jerseys or budget the exorbitant price of admission just to watch these people run amok? Professional sports leagues wonder why attendance is down? Maybe it’s because we no longer want to spend our hard-earned money supporting people who don’t know how to act. There’s a reason Mel Gibson is no longer a box office draw.
I understand this is nothing new. For years, athletes have been dropping N-bombs, taking drugs and stepping on those less fortunate than them, both literally and figuratively. It’s just getting tired.
When it’s all said and done, I’m going to continue watching my sports. I’m not sure the same can be said for the rest of you. These are the games I love; I just can’t say the same about those who play them. The more that athletes think the rules of common decency don’t apply to their own circumstance, the less we fans are going to care, until we stop caring altogether. After all, why shouldn’t we? They already have.
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Riley Cooper has open invitation to come to the Paramore district of Orlando to discuss is issues with African Americans and then after he can also come to the areas of Over-town and Liberty City areas of Miami for a warm welcome .
Another dumb itinerant buffoon ___________ product of the Gators` program and recruited by Urban Meyer .
If Cooper can`t throw down (fight) t like a man , then he should simply shut the ###k up .
tophatal
MVPED … now you are on to something. Maybe you send an email to Bud Selig about the idea. On second thought, a phone call might be better.
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Al…
Critics were blasting both the Eagles for acting swiftly and the NFL for doing nothing.
I thought the Eagles did exactly the right thing. They fined Cooper, probably a hefty amount, and made him undergo mandatory counseling.
What else should they have done? Waited for things to get worse?
Drew…
If they have bodybuilding contests for guys on steroids and guys not taking ’em, why can’t Major League Baseball do the same with its MVP award?
Actually, Braun DID test positive. In the official document released by the arbiter that ruled in Braun’s favor he admitted that the improper handling of Braun’s urine sample IN NO WAY affected it’s validity. In fact one of the witnesses called BY BRAUN’s attorney to testify on Braun’s behalf also admitted under oath that the sample WAS NOT compromised.
Publicly Braun’s attorney claimed his innocence, but under oath made no such assertion. UNDER OATH no one doubted the accuracy of the sample, only whether it was handled improperly.
Pat…
I hear that person, the handler. is also currently looking for work.
Riley Cooper: Clearly an idiot!
Ryan Braun: I really don’t care.
Terrance Jones: The worst of all three mentioned…by far.
People are WAY TOO sensitive to things in todays world. I watched the Riley Cooper video and thought ” what a total idiot “. Then, 30 seconds later I had moved on in my life.
You see, I am raising 3 kids by myself, work 45 hours a week. I don’t have time to be offended by every moron that does something stupid or says some ignorant comment. Honestly, people need to start worrying more about themselves and less what something somebody may say that may be offensive to people. Riley Cooper is a racist and a moron. That is his choice. I know it, you know, everybody knows it. So lets move on and worry about the good people of the world.
I honestly don’t care about Ryan Braun juicing…most of the league is doing it so it is somewhat of a level playing field. I don’t care much for his lying, but I am not sure what everyone expected. The thing about the steroids is all of the records that may fall because of them and that does suck.
Terrence Jones…just wow. This cat actually was violent towards a homeless guy. I have heard it all now. He is much more of a nuisance than Riley Cooper to society btw.
So I rank these three in terms of offensive behavior in this order.
Terrance Jones
Riley Cooper
Ryan Braun (again who cares?) Clean up the whole sport and I will start to care.
You’re the man, D. VERY well said.
Yeah, I think Jones is one of Calipari’s kids too. I’m not sayin’, I’m just sayin’.
Calipari is dirty no doubt. That said he recruits the best basketball player regardless of socio-economic background and just tries to win games. Jones beating on a homeless man probably comes from parenting or lack thereof.
Yeah I don’t know what is going on in the world, but it is a disturbing trend. I think it still gets worse before it gets better…if ever.
You are a good writer so keep up the good work chump! I enjoy reading your articles. One day I will make my way into Mangroves Soho for an adult beverage.
Remember the saying about cheering for laundry? Dirty laundry is more like it!
Excellent writing SC. Strong post.
Very proud of you.
These “pro’s” are acting like a bunch of spoiled brats.
Don’t know if it’s the celebrity, inflated paychecks or if these same people … if otherwise living an “average” (not pro-sports) life might otherwise be in local jails & talking to their Public Defenders?
Part of the horror is the example they are setting for today’s kids/ fans. I’m hoping that no one out there thinks any of this stuff is “okay?”
I, for one, am grateful for posts like yours that calls them out & makes people think.
Did I mention how proud I am of you?
Well I think sporting event attendance is down because some of the more famous or should I say well known athletes are letting their fame go to their heads. They think they are invincible now and no one can touch them but I also think they are finding out differently about that. Maybe some of the people that like sports so much and do spend their hard earned dollars to go to these events should boycott them for one season and see how that goes over with the national sports league. I think then they will start scrutinizing better on who they promote for their teams and the teams might act a little better to.
Chris, Players care far less to me than teams. For that reason, coaches for years were loathe to put players’ names on jerseys. I agreed with that.
Sunday afternoons in the fall are delightful because we root for success for teams, not players who may or may not measure up to social standards.
I have neither inclination nor time to follow the misadventures of miscreants. It will never stop and I won’t allow it to interfere with my enjoyment of sports.
Society today, more and more, allows, nay, encourages, rule breaking and cutting corners. So does sports. Individuals who cannot play by the rules should not be allowed to be a part of a team.
Society is a team. I like teams working towards a common effort.
If you can’t play fair, you can’t be on my team. A pipe dream, perhaps, but my feelings nonetheless.
D…
I’m proud of ya’, bro. And thanks for the kind words.
You know you’re welcome at my spot any time. Just bring some cash as you know we’ll be hitting the Hard Rock poker room afterwards.
Which reminds me, Aer, I may have to try my hand at some Don Henley next karaoke night.
Thanks, M.
Maybe it’s the increased media attention that we have these days or maybe it’s just revisionist history but I don’t remember this many athletes getting into consistent trouble back in the day as they do today.
Julia…
Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment.
The only problem is, as I understand it, is that with so much high-dollar marketing and TV rights, only a small percentage of team revenue actually comes from ticket sales.
I’m going to look into that and see if there’s any truth to it.
Perfectly fair sentiments, Jimmy.
I don’t mean to come off a preachy in my last two posts but look, we’re all representatives of something, whether it’s our jobs, our families, ourselves.
I’m a grown man and while I have my flaws, I treat people with respect and don’t run around like a damn idiot.
I don’t think that’s too much to ask of everyone else no matter how much money they make or what kind of ball they toss around the courtyard.
Chris
Jones is an @ss !
Let him (Terrence Jones) try those antics in Miami and he would be knocked on his rear end . What an ingrate !
This situation was known the Eagles several days ago and Riley Cooper tried to convince GM Howie Roseman and the Eagles` security in-house security personnel that it was much ado about nothing . The fact that the incident actually occurred at Lincoln Financial Field was bad enough . Yet the fact that the player tried to brush it off as a none occurrence was even worse .
The Gators are really putting the word @ss back into the word classless by way of the lack of intelligence that has been recently shown by their players drafted into the NFL over the past four years .
Ditto to what HeavyD said.
And…
People say and do stupid shit when they’re drunk…and sometimes when they’re sober. What this clown said is going to follow him for the rest of his NFL career.
Funny to me that Marcus Vick is now putting the bounty out on him because it hurt his widdow feewings so bad that a white guy used the illegal word for white guys. Yet he probably had no problem with his big bro having dogs chew each other to death…That’s all fine and dandy…Just living breathing creatures being forced to maul each other to death, right?
A word being dropped is more noteworthy.
…Bet Marcus didn’t say anything about Terrence Jones’ random act of kindness either…No big deal…Just some worthless bum, right? Far more offensive is the cracker popping off in the wake of the Trayvon trial.
Sometimes the priorities of the world amaze me.
Oh Riley… Why’d you have to go and ruin it for all the “grindy white guys” of the league? It used to be cool to be a white Wide Receiver. It was like being a woman in politics! People sympathized with you! Now it’s all down the drain. This is just another prime example of how beer muscles ruin peoples’ lives.
Chris
MLB is still moving at a snail`s pace concerning our boy A Rod . No word , `til Monday according to the league hierarchy . That`s so reassuring by baseball and Bud Selig . LOL,LOL ,LOL !!!
It took seven days allegedly to create the Earth but for baseball it has been several months and a whole load of flip-flopping by Selig as to what punishment will be rendered . Can it any worse ?
Dropped an NFL piece that also deals wit te Buccaneers .
No fool like an old fool …….. this is the NFL
tophatal ……………..
Yeah, Al.
I can’t say that I’m too happy with my alma mater these days but I did hear a good joke the other night.
A saint, a racist and a murderer walk into a bar and the bartender says “It’s great to be a Florida Gator!”
Bleed…
Why does Marcus Vick still have a say in any of this? He’s like Billy Carter, riding on his famous brother’s coattails but never really contributing anything of worth.
You’re right about Cooper though, man. Those comments will haunt him for the rest of his life. Michael Richards, who America loved, can’t find a gig. No major motion picture will sign Mel Gibson.
Like I said in the post, it’s not the use of the word or others equally as offensive that bother us. It’s the ease and spite with which people use them that does.
Ry…
Being a white wide receiver was like being a woman in politics. People sympathized with you. Ouch…. but hysterical!
Al…
I’ll have another piece up on A-Rod soon and get this… I’m defending the guy.
Oh, you’re gonna have a field day with this one.
Dude, what is going on with the former Gators? Now you know a little how I felt in recent years. Eagles did what they had to do… no way that locker room can operate normally if Cooper is still around…
I agree with the Eagles handling of the situation, Kev.
And I trust you’ve heard all the Florida Gator jokes at this point so I won’t bore you by repeating them.
All you’d need to do is scroll up.
It hurts doesn’t it? I still get Penn State jokes at work. It’s like, c’mon guys… it’s old news… that is until the trials come back in the headlines, as they did the other day, and they all come back again. Get ready for that, when Hernandez’s trial starts up. By the way, how is it that everyone connected to him keep showing up in the obituaries… with random accidents?
I dunno, Kev.
I think the main difference is that these (Cooper, Hernandez) were the acts of a few individuals where at Penn State, it was the key people within the institution that were covering up some pretty heinous acts.
I get it though. One can easily suggest that Meyer and company knew the kind of kids they were recruiting to represent their university but again, what big time program doesn’t bend the rules a little bit to attract some thug life?
Either way, we can agree both situations suck.
I think I’ve said it before here but “stupid is as stupid does.”
Speaking of stupid, Jed, Wes Welker and Greg Jennings are acting up.
Nice report Chump..
And I commented just because I agreed with Heavy D so many times!
D’s and agreeable guy, Tree.