Is it fair to hold UGA athletes to a higher standard than other students?
Aron White has stood up for a former teammate. (Associated Press)
The blogosphere can be pretty brutal, but there’s nothing like the columns and letters to the editor in a college newspaper when it comes to finger-pointing, moral absolutes and general snarkiness. The readers and writers are mostly students who’ve yet to experience the real world but have no doubt at all about the way things should be.
Believe me, I know. During my time at UGA I put in a stint editing and writing for The Red and Black’s opinions page.
Wading into a debate in such an environment can be a bruising experience, as Georgia tight end Aron White has found out.
White wrote a letter to The Red and Black recently taking issue with a column the student paper had run about Zach Mettenberger being kicked off the football team as a result of his drunken excursion to South Georgia on spring break.
The columnist, Bailey Keiger, a senior from Atlanta majoring in magazines, blasted Mettenberger for his “childish activities,” but also took a general shot at the school’s athletes, saying “this just shows the level of disrespect some student athletes — especially football players — have for their position at the university.”
She conceded that practice takes up a lot of the student athletes’ time but noted “they are given extra perks like a state-of-the-art training facility separate from the ‘regular’ student gym, and an exclusive studying center where they are given access to tutors and other academic resources.”
She declared herself a “huge sports fan” who has “attended almost every football game” in her four years at UGA and said her closet “has a disproportionate amount of red and black clothing.” And, she said, she understands what the athletics program does for UGA and “why these athletes are given special treatment; they hold a vital position in our university, one that is not easy to fill. They represent years of tradition and are often the face of our school. The special treatment is often justified and necessary to allow these players to fulfill both their academic and athletic duties.”
But, Keiger said, “I simply cannot understand why — after being given privilege after privilege after privilege — these athletes still continue to break rules and get themselves in trouble. Behavior like Mettenberger’s is unforgiveable … [and] shows a terrible ungratefulness of the benefits that have been bestowed upon athletes, and makes me almost want to burn the red and black in my closet.” She asked the athletes to “stop bringing shame to the Bulldog Nation.”
White responded with a letter to the editor in which he said that while he does not condone athletes breaking the rules, “I do not believe that a student athlete should be held to any higher standard than a normal student when being reprimanded for their actions.”
Athletes, he said, “are definitely in the spotlight and must hold ourselves to a higher standard. We have more stipulations put on our actions than non-athlete students and often have heavier loads as well. I agree that being a student athlete is a privilege. … I am more than grateful for the resources provided to me and my teammates. But the fact remains Zach Mettenberger is only a freshman. He should have used better judgment, but he would not be the first university student to get in trouble. He had a clean slate throughout high school and the rest of his freshman year of college.”
White’s main point: “If the staff of the Red & Black or any other student organization were watched as closely as our student athletes are then perhaps they would have more arrests and incidents too. So my advice to all UGA fans is to put this into perspective — UGA student athletes do not show a ‘terrible ungratefulness of the benefits that have been bestowed upon’ them. One mistake should not destroy Mettenberger or the rest of the student athletes’ characters.”
Keiger, White said, was “out of line” in her comments. He added a zinger that “A true fan would never think to ‘burn the red and black in her closet’ as she suggested in her column.”
White’s contention that athletes should be viewed like any other students drew a rebuke from R&B sportswriter Zach Dillard, who asked, “Come on, No. 81, are you really going to play that card?”
Said Dillard: “While Georgia fans should be proud to have such players as yourself who are making the most out of their college experience, other students are not going to feel sorry for a program who can not stay out of trouble — regardless of whether players are in a highly-scrutinized situation or not.”
On White’s point about athletes being viewed in the same light as other students, Dillard brought out the big hammer: “Feel free to keep petitioning on how the football program should be looked upon no differently than ‘any other student organization’ — then try to explain why football players’ average SAT scores were allowed to be 334 points lower than the average male student when your class was admitted back in 2007. So by all means, Mr. White, keep making insubstantial excuses as to why four Georgia players have been arrested in the past two months, and how the subsequent media attention is unjustified.”
Valid points on both sides. As Mark Richt noted when I chatted with him recently about his program’s spring troubles, athletes do receive public scrutiny that other students don’t and some are more comfortable with that than others. But it’s hard to argue with the point that since athletes are admitted to UGA under a different standard from regular students and are the public face of the university, they should be held more accountable.
What do you think? Should the members of the football team be viewed in the same light as any other group of students at UGA when it comes to getting drunk and arrested? Or is that higher standard a legitimate part of the deal when they get that scholarship? Was White unwise making a public defense of Mettenberger?
And, finally, would any true Dogs fan really consider burning their red and black clothing?
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193 comments Add your comment
TisP'doff
April 29th, 2010
10:17 am
It’s been well known forever, hell I’ve been out of college for 30 years, most athletes are dumber than a box of rocks. They get money to go to school,for what? They have no interest in education, they are just sure that they are on a path to a professional career in sports.
Why waste scholarships on them. Pay them a salary. Save scholarships for actual academic students who want deserve them. The ability to throw, catch, bat, or hoop a ball should not be the basis for a scholarship.
ugaclassof2004
April 29th, 2010
10:23 am
Well the irrelavent GT idiots are out in full effect today! Such losers!
As for the actual topic at hand, being in the spotlight as a collegiate athlete has many perks. When you win, everyone wants to be around you to pat you on the back, buy you drinks and get you laid. And when you lose they will look for any way they can to tear you down. That’s why these football players should do what Herschel did at UGA, which is surround himself with a select group of close friends that had his back regardless of what he did on the field. It’s easy to confuse admiration with friendship, but the two aren’t always intertwined. There are some folks that never learn this lesson much to their detriment.
Football players are just like anyone else: there are some that understand their role and the perks and drawbacks that come with it, and then there are others that are immature and waste their opportunities. Keeping admiration and adversity in perspective is good life training for these young men.
Dan
April 29th, 2010
10:26 am
Interesting someone like TisP’doff, referring to athletes and the stupidity of rocks indeed boxes of them thinks paying athletes a salary would free up scholarships. Pssst it doesn’t really make a difference what you call it, indeed a scholarship actually costs less (no margin involved) The athletic department actually adds money to the school cofers, be careful what you wish for
Bob
April 29th, 2010
10:34 am
All the tech fans taking about the line about UGA players getting in with lower sat scores need to look at their own program since almost every player ine past 10 years wouldn’t have even gotten admitted to te h if they couldn’t thro a ball. I think they had theargest disparity of athletes to student body out of any football program and let’s not forget the players who dropped in the draft failed drug tests.
ugaalumn81
April 29th, 2010
10:35 am
Aron White- you are exactly what’s wrong with the Dawgs….you sir, have the mindset of a punk.
ugaalumn81
April 29th, 2010
10:44 am
Another example if higher standrad is with the UGA Redcoat Band. If they are caught with alcohol or intoxicated while either in uniform, at a band function, or in any other situation representing the University or the Band, they are GONE. And they are not on full scholarships like the football team! Why should the football players be any different? Geez dude, they are paid” for a job. If you act like that on your job, my guess is that you too will be FIRED. Good riddance, Mettenberger, you punk….. you disgraced yourself, your parents, and UGA. I hope you learn from this costly mistake and grow up.
Dismissal of Mett, treatment of football players.
April 29th, 2010
10:44 am
From what I hear, Damon evans had a “Come to Jesus” meeting about two weeks prior with every male athlete. He said next person to get in trouble with females for what ever reason, you are gone. Looks like he was a man of his word. Also, word on the street in Athens is that what went down in Valdosta deserved a dismissal, first offense or not.
jasont13
April 29th, 2010
10:45 am
Being a former student athlete on scholarship it’s hard to say if they should or should not be held to a high standard. If Ms. Keiger gets picked up on Broad Street for under age drinking will her name be in the paper and have people bantering as to why? More than likely it will not. As to the SAT and ACT scores for athletes. The NCAA mandates the score for athletes, therefore if you do not want to be in the NCAA then have your own scores for admittence. Every university has lowered academic standards for athletes. This includes Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt and all the other schools that people like to call academic schools. If you want to put any blame, then blame the NCAA and or the governent for allowing partial qualifiers to be accepted.
Another Saint Simons
April 29th, 2010
10:48 am
Aron, Bailey, and Zach all seem to be intelligent kids who express themselves clearly. For that, I am grateful. As for the Stafford incident, as well as the incident in M’ville, the owners of these establishments knew that these students were under the legal age. Stafford was 19 and already famous. I would love to see the adults in these situations held to a higher standard.
jasont13
April 29th, 2010
10:48 am
Being a student athlete is tough. Most of the people on here that complain that its a privalge. Well what did you all do in while you were in college? Did you wake up most mornings at 6 am to go work out? Did you go work out from 2pm to 5pm then go study?
jasont13
April 29th, 2010
10:50 am
Also to the person who saw Stafford go to a bar in Athens and pour his own drinks is here say and until you can prove it with pictures that is all it is. Funny how people in amercia try to bad mouth and bring others down once they have fame. To me it sounds like jealousy.
ugaclassof2012
April 29th, 2010
10:52 am
TisP’doff, although you have more wisdom with your 97 years of age as opposed to my 20 years on this Earth, that was probably one of the most ignorant things that I’ve read on this blog. So before you regale me with your stories of what it was like to grow up with Abe Lincoln (note:sarcasm), keep in mind that your statement is proved false every day. To say that all athletes “have no interest in education” is like saying that all elderly people such as yourself wear dentures and yell at kids to keep off their lawn. It is a fact that 97 percent of all NCAA athletes go on to pursue a career other than their sport, which means that millions of these “rock-headed” students have some incentive to maintain their grades. Every year there are football, yes football players who choose to stay in college one more year so that they can attain their degree (e.g. Colt McCoy, C.J. Spiller, Peyton Manning). So before you go off on how the only reason these guys stayed was to improve their draft stock, remember that these players were all projected to be first round picks following their junior seasons. Some of these “rock-headed” athletes even go on to become U.S. Senators, such as the former basketball player Bill Bradley, a Princeton alum. So please TisP’Doff please don’t remind me about what life was like under the Jefferson Administration, because times have changed, although certain NCAA athletes have always gone on to accomplish much more than throwing a ball. Anyways, I am through with this blog, and keep in mind TisP’doff that while I was only joking with you on the elderly jokes, my stance to your comment remains unchanged.
dawgfan80
April 29th, 2010
10:52 am
It’s true what TisP’doff said. A significant percentage of football players ARE dumber than a box of rocks (sorry but it’s true). They will NEVER graduate, and the only reason they are in college is it’s a way to get into the NFL, if they are so fortunate. If it weren’t for their golden ticket into college, they would be dealing crack or bagging groceries.
Referee
April 29th, 2010
10:52 am
To all the bee fans that have to write on this site, When I was a kid in the 60’s, Ga Tech had a football player named Billy L. and he played football for Ga Tech in the fall and sold cars in the winter and spring in Gainsville, Ga. Ga. Tech football players have the same lower SAT scores as any other university. The problem with the Ga Tech football team is they are in a city of 2 million and the front page news in Atlanta is the number of killings that occur and not what a football player did in a small town bar. All 18 year olds that are away at college for the first time are going to make mistakes and it is the first 18 years of disipline by their parents that determine how much trouble they will get into. so, Get off their backs.
dawgfan80
April 29th, 2010
10:55 am
ugaclassof2012 have you lost your mind??? Look at their GPAs and graduation rates!!!!! Then tell me they are interested in higher education!
jasont13
April 29th, 2010
10:57 am
As to Zach Mettenberger, I wouldn’t be suprised if he is back on the team come summer workouts. He is still enrolled in school and has not be completly released from his scholarship. Which who knows if he even was on scholarship as his mother is employed by the university meaning he is allowed to go to school for free.
jasont13
April 29th, 2010
11:02 am
Dawgfan80, if your looking at BuLLdawg’s list of graduation rates then your looking at the wrong things. BuLLdawgs is a Florida fan. There is no way and I mean 0 way they lead have a\a higher graduation rate than most of the other schools in the SEC. They way graduations are accumulated are by how many players graduate in 4 years, not 5. And if you have a player who leaves early after his junior year and comes back two years later and graduates, that is not listed. Also if you have a player who graduates in the summer that does not count either. BuLLdawgs you in my book will never be a UGA fan or alum and if you really are, what a disgrace you are to the Bulldog Nation!
ugaclassof2012
April 29th, 2010
11:03 am
No I am not insane, and of course I realize this dawgfan80, but you simply cannot say that ALL football players are not interested in education. Heck our starting quarterback in highschool was recruited by several schools, but instead chose to take his 3.9 gpa to West Point. Myron Rolle became a Rhodes Scholar. Contrary to popular belief, there ARE players on the UGA football team with over a 3.5 gpa. I am not saying that football players do not have low GPAs/graduation rates, I am simply saying that I will not support a stereotype.
Blackberry Cobbler
April 29th, 2010
11:13 am
jasont13
April 29th, 2010
10:57 am
As to Zach Mettenberger, I wouldn’t be suprised if he is back on the team come summer workouts. He is still enrolled in school and has not be completly released from his scholarship. Which who knows if he even was on scholarship as his mother is employed by the university meaning he is allowed to go to school for free.
He goes to UGA free because his mother is employed by UGA? Where did you get this tidbit of misinformation from? UGA has no such policy. Know your facts before you speak, you moron.
common sense
April 29th, 2010
11:17 am
Who has time to study? Waaay to much smokin hot poon to wear out.
ugaclassof2012
April 29th, 2010
11:21 am
Blackberry Cobbler: The AJC actually reported this bit of information during the period of time that Mettenberger was being recruited, although you are right in that there is no such policy in place.
common sense
April 29th, 2010
11:22 am
Bust tail at practice, study playbook and game film, WIN games, get drunk, bang hot coeds, repeat
KimZ's Package
April 29th, 2010
11:33 am
Truth be told if UGA didn’t let sports players with bad grages and low SAT’s in, then there would so few African Americans at UGA.
georgia peach museum and oyster bar
April 29th, 2010
11:53 am
True that KimZ’s package.
Scott W.
April 29th, 2010
12:02 pm
This is the lamest post I’ve ever seen on this blog.
KimZ's Package
April 29th, 2010
12:10 pm
Scott W. lamest don’t make it a Lie or False. I said it before and I will say it again. UGA has 2,679 african american students enrolled for the 09-10 school year. What % do think think do compete in some sports program at UGA?
WonderDawg
April 29th, 2010
12:11 pm
Not the first female, non-athletic journalist whining about athletes (particularly male) being treated better. You will never please them. If Title IX didn’t please them, nothing will. . .
WonderDawg
April 29th, 2010
12:15 pm
I thought you croaked, Jan. . .
Scott W.
April 29th, 2010
12:16 pm
What you said would be a comment KimZ’s Package and I said the post was lame. I’ll let you figure out what the post is.
gdawginkalamazoo
April 29th, 2010
12:30 pm
Altadawg, all good points today my friend. It all comes down to doing the right thing. Intoxicated or not. The best advice that I was ever given was never to drink alcohol but if you do then don’t do anything stupid. Unfortunately I did not heed the first part of that advice, however, I never ever forgot the second part.
I don’t think that student athletes should be held to any higher standards that regular students. Just that they be held to the standards. Period. Part of the student athlete package is being in the public eye. And being in the public eye can be for good or for bad. I think that would be the student athlete’s choice to make just like any regular student.
BTW, I still don’t know the details behind Mettenberger’s release other than the rumored “hand up the skirt”, drunk, belligerent and scuffle with the bouncers thing. However, if it had been my date or sister and I witnessed an act like that, I can tell you that Mett would be worrying about getting rehab on his knee. Worrying about walking again rather than where to play.
troof
April 29th, 2010
12:39 pm
pastor richt runnin w/ a bunch of lepers… at least urbans wins w/ his.
PNWDawg
April 29th, 2010
2:35 pm
I just find some of Keiger’s quotes laughable. Such as comparing her ability to maintain a B average to the rigors of being a student athlete. My SAT scores were closer to that of the football team but I finished just .03 shy of being an honor graduate. I’m not inherently intelligent but I can promise you I didn’t have to work near as hard as many of the athletes. And I love that the athletics factored into her decision to attend UGA. Would that include football? Would it have anything to do with them being a winning team? Reality is there’s a strong inverse correlation of SAT scores to athletic performance. Sure, go ahead and get a bunch of well-behaved scholars suiting up on gameday. I’m sure after getting creamed by the likes of Florida and LSU the fans will still be excited because Aron White aced his chemistry exam and rescued kittens from a tree. You want to burn your red and black clothing? But you write for the Red and Black. I’m so confused.
Lee
April 29th, 2010
10:12 pm
Enter your comments here
James T. Kirk
April 30th, 2010
8:05 am
UGA’s hired guns are can’t even stay out of trouble they are so dumb. While our STUDENT athletes are learning how to build rockets and save the world. What a joke to even compare the two. UGA’s paid players are like Forrest Gump, while ours are like Matt Damon in Good Will Hunting.
Gt4ever
April 30th, 2010
8:33 am
Captain, Their hired guns are still better than ours…….
Gt4ever
April 30th, 2010
8:42 am
Matt Damon is a stretch……. I had some football players in my calculas class that were not the Matt Damon types, not to say I was either, but just sayin…
Technophobia
May 1st, 2010
6:56 pm
License, registration and proof of insurance are not higher standards!
Tdawg
May 1st, 2010
7:48 pm
I would most definitely burn my red and black. If they were on a gator fan. No Way Mett got kicked off the team for getting arrested for underage drinking. There had to be something else. What was it.
Dawg
May 2nd, 2010
12:12 pm
If Zack had told the truth about the incident he was involved in, he would still be with the team. This kid did not turn 18 and all of a sudden got a vision that drinking is all right. Mark did the right and only thing left, if you cannot be loyal to your coaches and team then you have to go and go he did. Bottom line is tell the truth.
Patient Dog
May 3rd, 2010
11:20 am
He made the choice, He paid the price.
Now how about all of the bloggers that espress their views with unfitting words and saterical comments, is that grown up or do we need to look at their comments and say that is OK to verbalize in bad taste because they did not get the education to utilize the English Language. Just woundering ???????????
St. Richt
May 3rd, 2010
5:02 pm
What higher standard is that? I think a regular student would have been arrested for sexual assault just like Zach Mettenberger was.. CMR- leader of men.
Jimmy
May 3rd, 2010
6:45 pm
I have no problem w/ athletes being held to higher standards. What I do have a problem with, however, is Mark Richt’s standards. So he gives Montez Robinson three chances even though the guy hits his girl friend, yet only gives Met one chance, because he lied to the coach??
Mett didn’t even do anything wrong. He got drunk and grabbed some chic’s a$$ and breasts. Big deal. While Robinson on the other hand physically beats the crap out of his girl. That’s ok though as long as he told the truth??
Nice going coach. Reminds me of so many bible hypocritical bible thumpers who talk about the “good word” by day and break it by night, only to do the same the next day because they go to church and are “forgiven.” Laughable really.
Jimmy
May 3rd, 2010
6:49 pm
Ok, in my last post I didn’t mean to make light of Mett’s situation. He di break the law and he got arrested and is now serving probation, which he should. But to get kicked off the team because he lied, while others get a second chance only because they told coach the truth??
Hey, it’s Richt’s team and he can run it the way he wants. Just seems a bit odd to me.
Oh, and to you guys who talk about such a tough life these athletes live, spare me. These guys should try working a real job to support themselves and going to school. Then mabye they would deserve some sympathy.