notes from the desk Professional athletes, not worth the fuss

Author: Jay Dolan

I wouldn't call myself a sports buff. I like watching sports, but let's face it, when it comes to having a debate on which team is better, I usually just make stuff up. I essentially try to fake what little knowledge I have about professional sports. Why do I do this? I suppose it's to look more masculine. I don't know why, because sports knowledge does not dictate masculinity. In fact, my weekly Grille trivia team is carried through the sports questions by my friend Lauren. I try to act like I know the answers, but she puts me to shame.

Despite my shortcomings in the world of sports, both watching and playing them, I have begun to build upon what little knowledge I have. This has occurred for two reasons. One, Winter Term is a month in which I can afford to waste time, and two, my television does not have a remote. Therefore, the TV stays tuned in to ESPN. Rarely will I change the channel. When I do, I change it to some other sporting event.

The other day, my TV was playing endless repeats of "SportsCenter." Anyone watching ESPN lately will know that there has been a lot of coverage on the Roger Clemens steroid scandal. As I pretended to read a research article for class, I couldn't help but notice the segment which portrayed various sports figures admitting to mistakes they have made in the past. Some of these mistakes included Michael Vick's dog-rearing days, Todd Bertuzzi's punch to the back of Steve Moore's head and Kobe's admittance to committing adultery. These actions, along with others, seemed pretty bad considering children look up to these athletes.

The questions I ask after hearing about the scandals is: why do we care about these people? And why do we think these athletes are role models? Americans are obsessed with their professional sports. Additionally, America is obsessed with all of the scandals that come along with them. Professional sports are entertaining, but I will never understand the obsessions people have for individual athletes. Too many people forget that activities such as football and basketball are team sports. I understand that Belichick, Brady and Moss are the stars, but last time I checked, you don't play a football game with three people.

I'm running off on a tangent, so I'll get back to my point of why professional athletes are not worth idolizing. Some may argue that there are countless examples of talented, charitable and good-natured sports stars. While I believe there are athletes out there who I could leave alone with my dog without worry, I still can't get over how many of them are flat-out liars, or just bad people. The real tragedy of it all is that most of them get away with it. They make ridiculous amounts of money for being a bad person that can play a game.

I guess it's the reality of the world we live in. Just look at our celebrities. Most of them, especially the young ones, are messed up in the head. They belong in jail or in mental institutions, not in magazines or movies. People often complain about living in the "Middlebury bubble," but when it comes to exposure to cocky athletes or insane movie stars, I'd rather be a bubble boy.

Jay Dolan '08 is an Opinions editor from Richmond, Va.