It’s Time To Question Character of the Arizona Football Program
When news broke Monday that University of Arizona defensive lineman Johnathan Turner had been indicted on a single count of sexual assault it made headlines in most of the major Arizona publications and even made it to ESPN.com’s front page. While the news was unsettling and a bit of a surprise it hasn’t seemed that out of the norm for the University of Arizona football program.
- Feb 07: QB Willie Tuitama minor in possession
- Aug 07:DE Louis Holmes arrested for fighting at Scottsdale bar
- Sept 07: QB C.J. Sedoris arrested for DUI, QB Tyler Lyon, LB Cole Graybill and DB Kyle Monson cited for minor in possession
- April 08: DE Josh Lewis gropes woman on camera while woman protests
- May 08: DE Johnathan Turner indicted for sexual assault
In a little over a year (February 2007 to May 2008) there have been 6 incidents (5 arrests and one “sexual assault” on youtube) linked to the UofA program involving 8 different players.
The issues have ranged from minor in possession charges and bar fights to two sexual assaults (the aforementioned Johnathan Taylor incident (for which he was charged) and an incident involving defensive lineman Josh Lewis (for which he was suspended) in which was video taped and posted on youtube).
One or two minor incidents, such as minor in possession charges, can be dismissed as individual character flaws or college students being college students. However when bar fights and sexual assaults become a normal occurrence there is a deeper problem.
The question is should Mike Stoops and Jim Livengood be held accountable?
These players have been recruited and offered scholarships by Mike Stoops and he and Jim Livengood have made decisions on the direction of the program and the type of young man to build the program around. That and that alone means they should be held accountable for the actions of the players within their program.
Is it a case of a few bad apples spoiling the bunch or is the program being built around athletes with major character flaws? Are Stoops and Livengood taking chances on players like Louis Holmes where character could be an issue just on the off chance it might improve the lowly football team?
The answer probably lies somewhere in the middle. By no means is every player on the UofA football team marred with issues but two guys like Johnathan Taylor and Josh Lewis can change the entire perception of a program.
It’s easy for fans of a school like the University of Miami to over look issues like this because they are a winning program (although it’s not right to over look them) but it’s another thing to have bad character athletes on also lose. Stoops and Livengood need to worry as much about cleaning up the programs imagine as they do about winning on the field. If they don’t they both will be shown the door and rightfully so.
Join the discussion at The Locker Room Forum. Arizona Sports 24/7.
Posted by Greg Esposito
Co-founder of AzSportsHub.com. Greg provides the sometimes serious, sometimes sarcastic and always interesting takes on Arizona sports (at least we hope). Whether it’s on In The Zona with Matt or in his column Greg reports, rants and raves about whatever is in the news for Arizona Sports.
http://www.azsportshub.com/author/espo
(Rate this post)
Loading ...Related Articles:
