It's been a roller coaster ride this week for BYU. They started the week ranked #3 in the nation, with the country talking about their possible #1 seed in the NCAA tourney. It was exciting to think of the prospects of March Madness. I pictured myself buying National Championship T-shirts for the family. Then, late Monday night just before heading off to bed, Rick and I switched the TV to ESPN to see if they were saying anything about BYU. Just before Rick changed the channel, I saw, scrolling across the bottom of the screen the words BYU... suspends... Brandon Davies...honor code. I told Rick to go back to ESPN, and we watched and listened in shock as the story began of the lead center, BYU's big guy, the top rebounder.
The rest of the week has been rough for BYU, to put it mildly. Tuesday night they lost badly to New Mexico. They were never ahead the whole game. Their shooting was awful; New Mexico's was wonderful. The team appeared to be shaken. Then, the news articles really started coming. Suddenly the national discussion includes BYU's Honor Code, including the utter astonishment by a sex-crazed nation that there might possibly be a university in the United States where college students AGREE to live by an Honor Code that prohibits premarital sex. And disbelief and respect that a univerity would choose to stick to their guns and suspend a top athlete just before the NCAA tourney.
Brandon Davies didn't do anything illegal. From what I've read, he didn't get his girlfriend pregnant, and was not accused of rape. No one had to know what he had done. He turned himself in.
That's why it's called an Honor Code. Honor. Something that has largely been forgotten about in collegiate sports (let alone professional). Something that most people in the country have given up on, and if they haven't given up completely on it, they merely cling to it as an ancient ideal that our ancestors once lived by. Very few seem to realize that it is possible to still live in this day and age with Honor.
The media has had it's say about this event. For the most part I have seen positive articles on the subject. Writers are shocked and pleased to see that there is a school that would take a stand like this. "Refreshing" is a word I've heard used over and over again. Just don't read the comments to those articles. That's where the nasty nature of our society comes through in full force. Here are a few quotes from some of the articles I've read:
"The admiration is for a school in the seductive environment of big-time college sport to live by its word, no matter the pain. How many other places have taken the easy way out?
The record books and trophy cases are full of 'em, as the NCAA investigators keep busy. It can be the land of nods and winks; an unfortunate mirror of a society where personal accountability has become no match for the quick fix."
"Maybe the most amazing thing about this story is the support the students and fans are giving the administration. I talked to dozens of rabid fans before the New Mexico game Wednesday night. These are the kind of fans willing to camp out in the cold for three days to get tickets to a basketball game. Every single one of them said they support the university's decision to dismiss Davies. They realize it most likely ruins their Final Four dreams, but that doesn't matter to them. The code they live by is far more important. And no matter what you believe, that must be respected."
I am more proud than ever to be a Cougar, and I'll still be watching for great things in the tourney (if you know me, I never give up on the Cougs). I hope they hold their heads up high, dig deep, and play the best ball games of their lives. They've got to do it without Brandon Davies. They've got to do it for Brandon Davies.
With Courage. With Honor.
4 comments:
I loved what you had to say. You always say it perfect. I was so excited after the game on Saturday and seeing the rankings on Monday...and then I saw the news. I am proud to have gone to BYU too, where our values are more important than winning. I really feel for Davies that EVERYONE knows his mistakes. I feel for that team that had everything going for them. We will stick behind them too. We still have hope they can do great things :) Go COUGARS!
Now I know we all know I'm not a byu "sports" fan, but I am a FAN of personal standards. Luckily there are still people in the world willing to choose the right even when it's hard and very inconvenient.
I have also been very impressed with BYU. And I think the main reason I feel bad about the timing is because it cast the player into such a media frenzy. I wish people's personal lives didn't have to become national news.
Go Cougars!!
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