The Trouble with Tangled Webs

Scottish novelist and poet Sir Walter Scott offered a timeless commentary when he wrote, “Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!”

TV and cinematic comedies have drawn from this truth – a small deception leading to another to conceal it, then another…until finally the protagonist is up to his or her neck in deceit run amok. Viewing such fictional calamities, we laugh. “Ha, ha, how silly. Ha, ha, he should have ‘fessed up in the first place and he wouldn’t have dug such a deep hole. Ha, ha.”

Unfortunately, web-weaving in real life is usually not as hilarious. It’s sad, even tragic. Such is the case with Jim Tressel, now-former head football coach at Ohio State who about six months ago was the toast of the town in Columbus. Seven consecutive victories over Michigan, six straight Big Ten championships, one national championship, and expectations for another in the near future.

Today, Tressel is unemployed, having resigned under intense pressure for having withheld information from superiors and the NCAA about players that broke rules. No crimes were committed, no laws violated, but NCAA rules were disregarded – and therein was the rub.

Tressel, having built a reputation for integrity, forthrightness – and faith – besmirched it all when he elected not to report the violations. As time passed, the cover-up deepened and the media outcry intensified.

Early in 2010 the coach probably thought it a small matter easily swept under the rug for the sake of a greater good. We might never know his actual reasoning. But with today’s 24/7 eyes-are-always-watching-you media and internet coverage, someone eventually checks under the rug.

Walking with integrity is a fine line, a delicate balance – especially in a high-profile positions. But it’s true for all of us. It’s a sobering reality to know regardless of our status in life, big or small, people are always watching and eager to pounce when we fail. “Bloodthirsty men hate a man of integrity and seek to kill the upright” (Proverbs 29:10).

Even more than that, we have an audience of one that knows our hearts, as well as sees our actions. In the Old Testament of the Bible, King David wrote, “May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you…. Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have led a blameless life; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; for your love is ever before me, and I walk continually in your truth” (Psalms 25:21, 26:1-3).

How many of us can say the same?

Crime Rates and the Gridiron

Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports have collaborated on an investigative report that determined seven percent of the 2,837 student-athletes on SI’s 2010 preseason Top 25 teams had criminal records, with nearly 40 percent of those offenses being serious crimes.

Is it time for wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth, learning about the “criminal element” in college football? Who knows? What’s the context? How does this compare to the student body at large, or society as a whole? I read one report that six percent of every 100,000 youths, ages 10 to 17 in the USA had been arrested. So in light of that, seven percent of college football players doesn’t seem that far out of line.

Almost like doing a study that shows 50 percent of all people in traditional marriages are female.

I remember one national sports radio commentator observing that U.S. legislators have a higher rate of crime, bankruptcies and other legal problems than the so-called “thugs” of the NBA.

Of course, we’d like to think each of our Saturday gridiron heroes spends his off-field hours studying diligently to ace every exam, helping old ladies across the street, visiting ailing patients in hospitals, feeding the homeless, teaching Sunday school and crusading to protect endangered species.

But let’s be honest: Many of these athletes come from disadvantaged homes, often absent a positive male role model. Survival, not upholding high ethical standards, has been their reality. For them, collegiate athletics provide a means for escaping the ghetto.

And football, as we all know, is a violent sport. Saturday game time’s are punctuated by cries from fans demanding the home team destroy the opponent, yet during non-game hours we expect these same players to forsake such dastardly demeanor and behavior, exhibiting less aggression than the Pillsbury Doughboy.

Many, thankfully, do seem able to separate gridiron hostility from their personal lives. But not all. The greater issue, it seems, is what happens to those young men once they step onto college campuses. Do their coaches take the effort to mold into them strong character qualities, along with insisting they take full advantage of the educational opportunities presented to them? Or do they simply reinforce the notion that superior athletes are above the law?

Frankly, having only seven percent with criminal records doesn’t seem all that startling. Seventy percent, certainly. Or even 17 percent. But seven? Not enough to merit screaming red headlines to announce the outcome of a “six-month investigation.”

But then, after expending lots of money and time in this study, and evidently already armed with a conclusion they wanted to document statistically, the SI and CBS powers-that-be obviously had to report something. To say “no big deal” would have been anticlimactic.

Right On Schedule

E. Gordon Gee, The Ohio State University’s animated, opinionated president, created a stir last week when he declared Boise State and TCU don’t play schedules worthy of consideration for the BCS Championship. Boise State made Gee’s statement a bit moot when it lost to Nevada.

But TCU remains undefeated and in the mix, pending the outcome of Oregon’s visit to in-state nemesis Oregon State and Auburn’s rematch with South Carolina in the SEC Championship game. If the Ducks or Tigers lose, that could launch TCU into the crystal football tussle, to Gee’s chagrin.

We need a major college playoff. It’s time for academics to give up the hypocrisy, admit major college football is big business, select the best four (or eight) teams each year and set up a playoff system, somehow incorporating the traditional bowl system.

But Gee has a point. Imagine if Alabama, Southern Cal, Texas, Ohio State (or name your favorite big-boy college football team) were to announce the following schedule for 2011: Wyoming, New Mexico State, Toledo, San Jose State, Louisiana Tech, Hawaii, Idaho, Fresno State, Nevada, Utah State, Virginia Tech and Oregon State. Except for the last two entries, even ardent fans would have to admit that’s cupcake city. Exactly what Boise State’s 2010 lineup looked like!

Or what if your team had the following slate for next year: Tennessee Tech, Baylor, SMU, Colorado State, Wyoming, BYU, Air Force, UNLV, San Diego State, New Mexico, Oregon State and Utah. Not your basic “murderers’ row,” but funny thing – that was TCU’s schedule this year.

Besides BYU, a lot of those games were the equivalent of BYE (as in, “bye week”).

Granted, Ohio State scheduled Ohio University and Eastern Michigan, a couple of cream puffs, as did all the traditional powers. But they also played a number of games against formidable opposition.

So in one sense, Gee was right. But in opposing a National Champion determined by playoffs, Gee is very wrong.

Suggestions to Fix What Ails Baseball

Baseball was my first love in sports. I remember the epic World Series battles between the New York Yankees and Milwaukee Braves in 1957 and 1958 when I was a little boy. And for decades afterward, I bought into the idea that baseball was the “American pastime.”

Unfortunately, the snail’s pace of the sport – in the context of today’s fast-food, microwave, immediately-if-not-sooner world – has turned it from “pastime” to more like watching time pass through an hourglass.

Other sports – notably football and basketball, pro and college – have surpassed baseball in popularity, particularly among younger people. The bedrock of baseball fandom today is the so-called Baby Boomer generation, of which I’m a card-carrying member. But even I have a hard time sitting through more than an inning or two anymore.

Baseball has long been a part of Americana, and it would be a shame for it to crawl into the Smithsonian and become a quaint relic of the past. Here are suggestions to revitalize the game:

Put pitchers on a time clock (call it a “pitch clock”). Pitchers take an interminable amount of time between pitches, scratching their ears, adjusting jocks or whatever they need to do. Football, basketball, hockey and other sports all utilize time clocks to keep action moving. How about having a clock that limits time between pitches to 20 or 25 seconds? If the pitch isn’t delivered by then, it’s an automatic “ball.”

Institute instant replay. Videotape replay has revolutionized both pro and college football, making for more accurate officiating, and it’s even used in some instances in basketball. Forget “tradition” – and egotistical baseball umpires. Institute instant replay for controversial calls, those bang-bang plays at the bases or questionable catches in the outfield. Get it right!

Outlaw the “drama.” One silly baseball practice is the manager storming onto the field to protest a call he disagrees with, jawing chin to chin with an umpire, even kicking dirt or throwing his hat. You don’t see this in football, or basketball – if you do, the coach is banished immediately. Such behavior isn’t tolerated in the workplace; why should a ball diamond be an exception? It’s just another waste of time – and if videotape replay is instituted, it becomes utterly unnecessary.

Have players show post-game sportsmanship. Have you noticed that after football games the opposing players mingle? And in basketball, competitors routinely shake hands after the final buzzer? Not in baseball. The winners do shake hands – but only with fellow teammates. Meanwhile, their opponents either shuffle to the clubhouse or watch enviously from the dugout. Let’s have a display of sportsmanship, with winners and losers congratulating each other post-game.

I’m sure there are other ideas that could be implemented as well, but these could be a good start. Otherwise, I fear, we’ll soon be going to museums to see baseball, displayed alongside T-Rex, the cotton gin and the “Spirit of St. Louis.”

Money, Sex and Power

Americans are fascinated by violence. Crime dramas consistently rank high in TV ratings. News shows typically lead with mayhem and tragedy. So is it any wonder one of the primary appeals of the National Football League is its weekly menu of violent collisions?

This week league officials have begun taking steps to curtail the inevitable consequences of mass plus force plus speed, first by levying large fines and second by threatening suspensions to offenders of rules designed to protect opposing players.

The problem is, horrific impacts are a big part of the NFL’s phenomenal appeal. Along with money – countless millions of dollars at stake through gambling and fantasy leagues, and sex – scantily clad cheerleaders stationed along sidelines for whatever purpose, the sheer power of muscled athlete crashing into muscled athlete has captivated the American male psyche. ESPN used to have a feature, “Jacked-Up,” that replayed the week’s most violent tackles. Will the NFL’s appeal remain as strong if it becomes a safer, gentler sport?

It could be argued the popularity of NASCAR, which grew steadily for a couple of decades, began to decline when it began imposing stringent safety measures after the tragic death of Dale Earnhardt, along with other drivers. Races still feature spectacular wrecks, but the macabre link with death has been virtually eliminated. Perhaps in the minds of some observers, if there’s no real danger, where’s the fun?

This isn’t to say the NFL shouldn’t step up to protect players from ferocious hits that could leave them being permanently maimed, even killed. No amount of compensation can offset disabilities – immediate or delayed – or loss of life.

But if the “greatest hits,” the ones that evoke the ooh’s and ahh’s from voyeuristic viewers, are subtracted from the equation, will the NFL sustain its attraction? Only time will tell.

Give Me Reality, Not Fantasy!

When I was a boy, we played several fantasy-type sports games – dice baseball, with numbers on the dice representing hits and outs; another game in which you placed cards of Hall of Fame baseball players over a spinner; and a vibrating, electric football game that literally shook the miniature players up and down the field.

I’ve never played “fantasy football,” but last week witnessed firsthand what it involves. That happened to be the night my alma mater, Ohio State, was opening its season against Marshall and I went to a local sports bar where fellow Buckeye fans here in Chattanooga often gather to share in the thrill of victory.

Our accustomed long table in front of the big TV screen, however, had been absconded by a group of fantasy football fanatics. I know they were fanatics because they each clutched stacks of paper containing team rosters and statistics from last year, and were also armed with laptops for collecting and correlating other relevant performance data.

Judging by the intensity and somberness of this group, you might have thought these people were negotiating a world peace agreement, or at least a hostile takeover of Microsoft, rather than forming make-believe football teams.

I admit to being miffed because their presence relegated many of us Buckeyes to a far corner of the restaurant, out of sight of the big screen, but had to wonder about the many hours these fantasy devotees were investing on the startup of an annual but essentially inconsequential pastime.

Perhaps these gridiron dreamers had visions of winning big bucks at season’s end, but it seemed like a strange way to spend time. Of course, I do my own things to consume time in silly ways. But at least they don’t deprive ardent OSU fans from enjoying the big screen!

It’s Football Time in . . .

As Monday Night Football’s opener inquires, “Are you ready for some football?!”

Tomorrow night, football – college version – will unwrap its season when Ohio State, my alma mater, hosts Marshall. South Carolina hosts Southern Mississippi in another notable opener. That will be what more people will see because it’s on ESPN, since the Buckeyes circa 2010 debut on the Big Ten Network.

For the moment, all football fans are euphoric – their favorite teams all are undefeated. (At least they haven’t lost yet.) For many, however, it will be downhill right after opening kickoff.

My hopes are especially high since the Bucks are a consensus No. 2 in preseason polls, and defending champ Alabama will face all kinds of challenges repeating. But that’s why they play the games. After weeks and months of “too much talk, not enough action,” every squad will have the opportunity to show what they can do.

Here in the South where I live, most fans seem convinced the SEC again will reign once everything in the season’s said and done. I imagine some of them even think the game was invented below the Mason-Dixon line. Actually the first football game was played between Rutgers and Princeton in 1869 in New Brunswick, N.J., just a few miles from where I grew up. The game then, of course, bore little resemblance to what we see today.

Since the NFL starts its season one week later, for one weekend college football will reign as king of the hill. And for the next four months we’ll listen to non-stop debates about who’s the real No. 1, who will win the Heisman this year, and whether anyone in the sluggish North can even compete with any team in the speedy South.

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some football!