If you are reading this you probably are aware of the dismissal of Brandon Davies from the BYU basketball team for having premarital sex. In fact you probably have your own opinion on it - it’s one of those lightning rod issues. I personally find it to be a really interesting situation and have done a lot of reading on. When reading the thoughts of many national columnists, there appear to be several consistent themes: 1. Good for BYU for sticking to their principles. 2. BYU’s honor code is unrealistic in today’s world. 3. There goes any chance the Cougars had at winning the national title.
I think the first and third are totally valid. Let’s get #3 out of the way first – he may not have been the leading scorer but as the team’s leading rebounder, he was a key part of the team. Sometimes a team can rally around the loss of a teammate (for whatever reason) but this is just terrible timing and really a key part of the team to lose. Sure they still have Jimmer, but he can’t guard the big men the Big East will throw at them.
So with that out of the way, let’s focus on themes #1 and #2. I am totally behind BYU and their decision. I mean, how refreshing is it that a major university refuses to bend over backwards to win? At most other major colleges (Stanford, Northwestern, Vanderbilt are a few exceptions) athletic programs are huge money makers. Whether it be in the form of ticket sales, merchandise or booster donations, a winning program is essential. I would argue that it’s relatively easy to build a winning program, but it’s impossible to build a winning program without cutting corners.
In an interesting coincidence, Sports Illustrated just published a report on criminal records in college football. They found that 24 of their Pre-Season Top 25 teams had at least one player with a police record. In fact 7% of all players had a police record. (Pittsburgh topped the list with 22players with a police record). There exist no crime data on non-athletes so we have no idea if that percentage is high in comparison, but I think it is definitely troubling.
The investigators found that of the Top 25, only two teams perform regular background checks on their players while no programs performed a background check on juvenile records when recruiting players. When asked why not, the coaches had varying answers: they didn’t know they were available; they trusted their ability to get to the bottom of the recruit’s past; they didn’t think they accurately reflected a teen’s character; they thought it was a breech of trust; or that rival programs would use it against them in recruiting.
I get it – coaches need to win games in order to keep their jobs. There is no such thing as a grace period anymore (just ask RichRod who was canned after only 3 miserable years in Michigan). They get a limited amount of time to show they can win and then they must keep it up for the long haul (just ask Les Miles and Mark Richt about that one). Along the way they are going to be faced with many moral dilemmas. Instituting a Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy when it comes to criminal records will help them sleep at night. But it also can have serious consequences on the program.
I am not trying to say that all players with criminal records are bad people. I’m not saying that they will continue down a path of crime. The fact is that most 18-year olds with a criminal record have one for something minor like robbery. Others may have criminal records for crimes they did not commit. (I don’t think it is a secret that discrimination by law enforcement still exists in this great country of ours). I personally am not convinced that criminal records are the Be All, End All. They are simply another bit of information in the vast array of knowledge that coaches learn about their players. The US is the land of second chances. If you made a mistake you deserve that second chance. If for some reason you can also help your team win, you will be afforded that second chance in an instant.
The problem with not knowing a criminal record is that you are unaware of players who have the potential to commit additional crimes. You can’t intervene and offer preventive assistance to those who may be prone to further crime. Second chances might in fact be turning into third or fourth chances.
For all the jokes about BYU and their school’s policies, they doesn’t have this problem. They hold their students to the highest of all standards. Something that you and I consider a minor indiscretion like drinking, swearing or sex is enough to get the students kicked out of school. They have no problems with crime on their team and yet they remain competitive. In football, they won a national title in 1984 (only 18 other schools have since won one) and have won 65% of their games to go along with 7 bowl games over the past decade. In basketball they have won 71% of their games and have 6 NCAA Tournament appearances in the past decade. Obviously something is working for them.
Now moving on to theme #2, it is my opinion that you and I don’t get to judge their Honor Code and we certainly don’t get to say whether it is unrealistic. The fact is they are a private college owned by the Church of Latter Day Saints. When students enter they agree to adhere to the Honor Code - they know what they are getting into. If the rules don’t sit well with you, there is nothing that says you have to attend BYU. It’s that simple. And guess what? BYU hasn’t closed its doors yet because of low enrollment. It’s the same as attending an all-male college or a military college. It may not be ideal for you or me, but it doesn’t have to be. We are all different and what works for one may not for another.
So I totally applaud BYU. In dismissing Davies from the team, they may have just doomed the basketball team to an early exit in the NCAA Tournament. However, unlike the other 99% of major athletic programs, they are able to take a step back and realize what’s important. College athletics are not above the law. Rules should not be bent just because you are ranked 3rd in the nation and in line for a possible Final Four birth.
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