Embarrassment at LSU

The Story

I've been following this story very closely since it began, and quite frankly, it makes me want to puke.  Allegedly, senior quarterback Jordan Jefferson, and several other players broke a 10:30pm curfew imposed by head coach Les Miles, and went out to a bar, called Shady's, on a Thursday night, a popular night to go out among LSU students.  Apparently, at around 2am, the time in which the bars in Baton Rouge are required to close, LSU football players, including Jordan Jefferson, blocked the exit of the parking lot at Shady's to prevent a particular truck from leaving.  The individual driving the truck honked at the players in an effort to get them to move.  Apparently, the players didn't.  Then a brutal fight ensued.  It is alleged that the individual was pulled out of the truck and kicked in the head several times by a number of LSU football players, including Jefferson.  Apparently, three other individuals were involved in the fight and sustained minor injuries.  I don't know details of the fight.  I simply know generalities, and what is being reported, and it is enough to make me embarrassed to be an LSU alum.

I am embarrassed because the senior starting quarterback was heavily involved.  He shouldn't have been out in the first place.  As a senior and a four year starter, he, of all people, should set the tone as a leader through his example.  It's one thing for a sophomore backup linebacker to break curfew to go out.  It's different when one is the starting quarterback, and all eyes are on that individual as the face of the team.  Jefferson, of all people, should have set the example, honored the coach's curfew, and stayed home.  As the starting quarterback, and might I add, a struggling one, he, of all people, should have a greater understanding of what he stands to lose.

I am embarrassed because the players did not move when the individual honked.  I'm sure that more was said by the driver of the truck than a simple honk to provoke the players, and I am sure that there is more to the story than the simple parking lot exit, or lack thereof.  Despite all that may have happened to provoke the players, if they would have moved when the driver honked, then nothing would have happened.

I am embarrassed that the players were fighting with common students.  These football players are finely tuned athletes trained to beat their opponent in a physical contact sport requiring strength, speed, and endurance.  These players are considerably larger and stronger than average nonathletes.  There is no reason that they should be fighting for that simple reason.  What honor is there in beating up the small, weak, and untrained?  The players should have understood their place as athletes, and walked away.  It's already established that they can beat up anybody.  Why prove it?  The only thing it will do is cause people to look upon them with contempt, and respect them less.

Number four ranked LSU is less than two weeks away from the biggest season opener in the history of the program against the number three ranked Oregon Ducks.  This year's version of the LSU Tigers are thought to be contenders for a national championship.  The players involved should have considered that when breaking curfew, not allowing a truck to exit a parking lot, and beating average idiots senseless.  Now, apparently, those who were injured are pressing charges, and jail time is a possibility.  Is proving one's manhood, in the form of physical violence, worth it?