Ursus A. Horribilis wrote:EWURanger wrote:
Perception is reality. And besides, what you're saying would be true if it were just the sexual assault allegations. I imagine all the DUI's and other various shenanigans had something to do with the decision as well.
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Perception isn't reality. When none of this stuff was going on there were still a lot of dipshits calling Montana the Evil Empire and making up stories of how and why they were always second fiddle.
Reality is reality and SE came pretty close to it as far as I can see.
Don't you have something to do with EWU as far as administration or academics goes? I might be confusing ya with another but let's pretend if not. Should RA's & Administrators begin answering for the actions of students if they are on partial or full scholly? Gonna be a lot of firings out there.
What is the DUI rate and other crime rates as compared to the rest of the student body?
Now, all that being said, I don't have a problem with it because there could be more to the story that we don't know yet and even if is just what we see on the surface it may have been time to take steps that seem drastic to some to curtail any more of the shooting from the hip type of thing. Yeah there was a pun in there, so what?
Ursus - nope, not officially connected to the University other than being an alum and having some other close ties that I won't go into here.
But to answer your question - yes, I do believe that Administrators/Coaches should answer for the actions of student-athletes if they are on scholarship. Hell, I would argue that the same would be true of any student-athlete, not just those on scholarship. And I understand that these guys aren't always going to be angels and there are always going to be your "oh shits" in every program, but these kids are in many cases receiving a free education in exchange for representing the University on the field. So in that sense, the DUI rate or percentages of kids getting in trouble in relation to the general student body is irrelevant. The general student population isn't representing the institution in the same capacity as student-athletes are and aren't placed under the same scrutiny. It goes with the territory - you don't want to follow team rules or the law, no one's forcing you to be a student athlete, and I don't think it's unrealistic to have those expectations.
In my opinion, it's less about the punishment being dealt out when an offense is committed, and more about the environment you're creating as an institution/program. It's about leadership - and I honestly believe that when you create a culture in your individual sphere of influence where stupid shit is less tolerated, you end up with fewer problems. I think the AD and HC failed, at least to an extent, to create this kind of culture. When you add up all the run-ins with the law over the past several years, whether charges were ever filed or not, it is quite a hefty list. And minor punishments being doled out such as missing a quarter of play against a DII opponent in a game that doesn't matter doesn't help things. Just using that as an example, but this is where perception does, in fact, matter.
I seriously doubt the recent developments have any kind of lasting effect on UM"s football program, and this isn't about jealousy or wanting to see Montana fail. I could honestly care less...but I think that most folks who have been watching this thing as an outsider would say that it's clear some changes needed to be made. I'm not sure of any organization, whether it's business or government, where there isn't some culpability in relation to the people in charge and the actions of their subordinates or people they oversee.