Discipline Issues For the Tide

Yesterday I did something I have never done before in my life. I called a sports radio talk show. I called the Paul Finebaum Show. I have listened to Finebaum the last few years and I have found him to be informative, entertaining, and very interesting. Often I disagree but I respect his opinions and I understand his perspective.

The main topic yesterday was Tide linebacker Juwan Simpson's recent brush with the law and statements he made on Monday about that. In a nutshell, Simpson stated that he didn't feel like he did anything bad enough to deserve punishment. He thought he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. He even stated that he thought his "punishment" should include an ice cream cone.

In my call I made several points. Even though I was disappointed with the initial behavior, his response on top of the behavior adds to the disgrace. It was obvious that he showed no remorse, took no responsibility, and treated the issue as a joke. He didn't even have enough sense to at least say the right things. He seemed to be thumbing his nose at the criminal justice system, Coach Shula, the fans, the media, and the University. This made me feel embarassed as an alumnus and as a fan. I shall reserve judgement on Coach Shula's response. However, it is obvious that no one has gotten through to this young man yet. Perhaps most disturbing was that his prior reputation was so good. To me, his comments call all that into question.

There was an excellent column by Cecil Hurt in today's Tuscaloosa News.