Tag Archives: ncaaf

Oklahoma Loses Recruit Due to Racist Fraternity

By Matt Stevenson

March 16, 2015

Oklahoma University’s Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity has been closed after a video of members rehearsing racist chants went viral. After an investigation took place, the two seen in the video leading the racist song-like chant have been expelled from the University as well. However, the football program has taken a loss also as 4-star recruit, Jean Delance, de-commited last week.

Delance, a highly scouted offensive linemen, gave his verbal commitment to Oklahoma last November and was looking forward to playing for the Sooners. Then the video went viral. Delance made a statement regarding the situation and confirmed the football program and staff had nothing to do with his decision to de-commit.

“It was very disturbing. I never thought that stuff was still trendy as much as it was back then or it could keep repeating itself. It was very disturbing. I didn’t like what was going on. I’m glad the way they handled it but that’s still a bad downside to me.”

With a 4-star recruit gone, questions are now raised if this is the start of a revolutionary movement. For years recruiting has been determined on how good the school’s football program is. You go to a school that will motivate the you as a person and as a football player in order to succeed in the NFL one day. However, with the Delance decision, will recruits look at this and take a stand?

This is an interesting opportunity here, and not just from a racism perspective. The environment and personalities of the student body have personally affected Oklahoma University’s recruiting in this case. My belief is that highly recruited players will take the student body into consideration more than ever before. There is no excuse for racism, or any sort of discrimination at this point in time.

Eric Striker, senior football player at Oklahoma University posted a video of himself expressing his anger towards the fraternity. He stated later that there is a “very real divide between the predominantly black athletes and the predominantly white fraternities”.

Striker also recalled attending some of these fraternities parties with former running back, David Smith. While they welcomed the black athletes in, they would shout racial slurs and warn others that they “should watch out for Smith, because he might take a girl home and rape her” due to supposed “stereotypes” according to the members of the fraternity.

The bottom line is that while there is a larger problem at hand, the student body is now personally affecting recruiting for a sport that brings in large amounts of profit year after year. Delance made a very honorable, bold decision to de-commit from the University. Hopefully, student bodies across the United States understand that racism has no place in today’s society and learn from the inexcusable actions from these students. 

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Jameis Winston and FSU Need a Timeout

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By Ellen Chlumecky

Jameis Winston has not been doing himself any favors these past couple years at Florida State University. He has stolen, behaved inappropriately in public at the Florida State University student union, and he was accused of sexually assaulting of a woman in December 2012. I understand college students acting in a childish manner at certain points in their career but he clearly exceeded his strikes and now is being punished for it.

On Wednesday, January 7th, attorneys for the women who accused Winston, filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida against FSU. The woman is suing them alleging that the university did not properly protect her Title IX rights. The woman’s attorneys demand a trial by jury and damages from FSU for fostering a “hostile educational environment.” Her attorneys stated that FSU’s athletic department deliberately concealed the rape from the university and did not investigate the allegations as required by federal Title IX laws.

The woman alleged that Winston sexually assaulted her in his apartment on Dec. 7, 2012. Winston and his attorneys contented that the sexual encounter was consensual. Winston was also never charged by either the Tallahassee police or the state attorney’s office.

Last month alone, Winston was cleared of four violations of FSU’s student conduct code hearing after a two-day student judiciary hearing. Why any university would want a student that continue to causes this many problems, no matter how good he may be at football and baseball, is beyond me. While the main violations have been accusations and have not been clearly confirmed or denied, he still has committed several inappropriate acts that are not respectable for any college student.

As any avid sports fan hopes to have is for the best players around for their selective team. However, I would hope most people would not want players who do not have correct moral compasses, especially an athlete who continually disrespects women as often as people have been reporting he does. In Jameis Winston’s actions, he is showing that he clearly does not know wrong from right or just chooses to ignore the rules. His attorneys can only defend Winston for so long until he does something that he cannot take back.

Jameis Winston announced that he intends to enter the NFL Draft inside of returning to Florida State University for his junior season. Since he is three years removed from his high school graduation, he is eligible to enter the NFL Draft as a sophomore. The day he is drafted, the day he becomes the NFL’s problem instead of FSU’s.

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DaVaris Daniels is #NDNoMore

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By Ellen Chlumecky

The Notre Dame athletic department athletic department made the vote to suspend three out of the five football players involved in the academic fraud investigation who will now not be playing for Notre Dame this season. The three men who are suspended are: DaVaris Daniels, Ishaq Williams and Kendall Moore. All three have made comments about what their plans will be from here.

Ishaq Williams openly stated that he would wholeheartedly like to return to the team for the following season. Kendall Moore, already a current graduate of Notre Dame, stated on Instagram how he was disappointed about the decision but has decided he will not return to Notre Dame for next season. Moore placed a long post on his Instagram expressing his gratitude towards Notre Dame and while he is upset about the decision he will move forward.  Both expressed how they were both looking forward to the new chapter of their lives and believe their integrity remains intact as they leave Notre Dame.  While DaVaris Daniels, also already a current graduate of Notre Dame, has made it known quite profoundly how much he would love to return to Notre Dame next season.

DaVaris Daniels has taken to Twitter to make his voice heard about his desire to return to Notre Dame. Daniels tweeted a few posts on Twitter expressing his gratitude towards Notre Dame and how he has no intentions to transfer schools. His father, Phillip Daniels, has also taken to Twitter to talk about the situation. He first posted how DaVaris will be suspended for this upcoming season. The next post was about the possibility of DaVaris returning in the 2015 season and how it would be a great opportunity for DaVaris.

While it is easy for all these young men to take to social media to rant or post nasty messages about the situation, none have shown any signs of this particular behavior. They have only posted positive remarks about the wonderful education they have received, the opportunities they were given and the people who have supported them through this time.

Notre Dame holds high academic and ethical standards. The way these young men are handling the situation show that while they might not believe they are in the wrong, they have yet to blame the institution for their mistake. These players were in the wrong for what they did and should be punished for their actions, they at least showed maturity in leaving the institution without blaming anyone in the process.

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