Team Project: Column

No one said that being a college student with a child would be easy, but using the resources on campus could make things less hard.

 

Many people have enough trouble with college as it is. A lot of people have problems with raising children. Combining the two can lead to an extremely challenging few years.

 

Parents, particularly young parents, who attend school must be prepared to face an uphill battle. The parent must face the standard academic workload. He or she must ensure that the child is cared for while he or she is in class. In many cases, the parent must also work to support the child, which complicates the situation further.

 

Foster

ULM counselor Karen Foster shared many tips on how parents could be successful.

 

She said one of the most important steps is for the parent to find a support system. A set of family and close friends can be the difference between success and failure. The support system can help the student in many ways. Family can help to take care of the child when needed. Friends, especially those who are also in school, can help the student in their studies. Both can be there for emotional support, which is very important.

 

“A lot of times they’ll try to do it on their own, and you can only do that for so long,” Foster said.

 

Foster said that most of the successful parents take advantage of the resources available to them. She said that many parents who are in school deal with very high levels of stress. They must take steps to curb this. The counseling center is a great place to start. The center can help them to manage their stress better. There is also a childcare center that is located on campus that can assist young parents. The center gives parents a reliable place for the parents to leave their kids while remaining close by in case of emergency.

 

Informing the professor of the student’s circumstances can also be very beneficial. Most professors will work with the student to make his or her schooling a little bit easier. Foster encourages parents to let professors know if their child is sick or an emergency comes up so they may know what they missed.

 

Time management is crucial to being successful as well. Balancing between parenting, school work and work can be very challenging. All of this can lead to high amounts of stress which may lead to a student feeling overwhelmed and giving up. Foster said that taking breaks are important. The student taking time out for themselves helps to keep stress levels down which helps them in the long run.

 

Following these tips do not guarantee success, but they can go along way to improve the chances.

With All the President’s Technology, How would things change?

 

When I was assigned to read “All The President’s Men,” I immediately wanted to turn the lights off, curl up in the corner, try not to cry… and then cry a lot. My first thoughts were that this was some old, “back in my day” story. Well, I wasn’t exactly wrong.

 

I came into the story with my brash, youthful ignorance in full force. After I read through it, I had been taken down quite a few pegs.

 

Every American with any knowledge of our history certainly has at least heard of Watergate. It’s crazy to think that this started pretty simple.

 

There was a break-in. That’s not uncommon. It occurred at the Democratic National Committee. That is. Down the rabbit hole we went. Watergate was just the start. More of these types of “ratfucking” maneuvers were discovered. Eventually, everything led up to the man in charge, President Richard Nixon.

 

Let me preface my arguments by saying that Woodward and Bernstein worked extremely hard on this story. The thought of not having all my notes stored in one place instead of spread out everywhere makes me cringe. The reporters searching through the library manually to find out information makes me thankful I live in the age of the internet. THEY WROTE ON TYPEWRITERS PEOPLE! Bless their souls, I gained so much respect for every reporter that lived before the internet age.

 

There are few advances that Woodward and Bernstein could have benefited from if this scandal occurred in today’s time.

• The internet. I cannot imagine my life without this wonderful invention. Woodward and Bernstein could have gotten their research done a lot faster with a little bit of Google. Instead of searching through phone books, a simple Google search would yield more information. Government websites would show who is on each committee. This would help Woodward and Bernstein put the puzzle together a little bit quicker.
• Cell Phones. I doubt Instagram would help the reporters much, but cell phones would have helped to contact their sources whenever they wanted to. This could have also helped them in general. Cell phones have really made life easier. Combine today’s smartphones with the internet and the reporters having databases with them every step of the way.

 

While these would be great advantages, it’s important to think about the flip side to that coin. While the public has gained more access to this technology, the government has grown to adapt. It’s impossible to think of Woodward and Bernstein going against the government of their time, with today’s technology. Spying is not all about suits and binoculars anymore, it’s guys in glasses watching a computer screen. If Bernstein and Woodward were worried that they were being watched, it would be even worse today. The government does things that we don’t know about. Do you think if the President wanted to make sure this story did not get out, he couldn’t have somebody hacking into Woodward and Bernstein’s computer and wipe the drives?

 

Going farther than that, in the age of the internet, hacking would probably be the way to go as far as espionage is concerned. There’s no paper trail for that. Yes, they’re people much smarter than I am that are able to track it down but it’s not easy.

 

I don’t want to call it luck, because they certainly had to work for it, but the reporters were fortunate they caught all of the breaks needed to get to the bottom of it all. The government covers themselves a lot better today. If you think they were careful then, you should check them now. That slush fund that was used to pay off these people? Yeah, you wouldn’t be able to find that on those government websites.

 

All in all, I think it made the journalists of that time period better. They had to scratch and claw for every lead and every part of the story. It was fascinating reading the tactics they used to get information. You would think that they had psychology degrees the way that worked over other people. Instead of listening to what the sources said, they paid attention to what they did not say. When the government dismissed their reports, they paid attention that the government did not outright deny it. They were clever, cunning and hungry. They had sources, like Deep Throat, that would only confirm or deny if they were on the right track. That meant it was up to them to keep the story rolling.

 

Today’s journalists owe a lot to Woodward and Bernstein. They basically paved the way for our generation. You’ve heard of “The Play” in football and “The Shot” in basketball? Well, this is “The Story” in the journalism world.

 

I’ll leave you, dear reader, with this video with excerpts from the David Frost interview with Richard Nixon.

 

Let Them Have Cake! (or at least three meals a day)

I’ve got two quotes to start this off with:

 

• “The truest form of ignorance are vanity, and pride and arrogance.” -Samuel Butler 
• ”To be perfectly frank, the notion of using a union-employee model to address the challenges that exist in intercollegiate athletics is something that strikes most people as a grossly inappropriate solution to the problems.” -NCAA president Mark Emmert

Is it just me, or the NCAA getting a little rattled?

First, Northwester University decides to unionize. NCAA shrugs it off.

“No big deal, no way a court will ru—Wait, what?!”

And then we have  Shabazz Napier who said he goes to bed hungry. Then, after leading UConn to a title, in what may be the best passive-aggressive jab at the NCAA ever, calls his team the Hungry Huskies. I hope that he did that on purpose because he saw his moment and he took it, Kanye West style. On top of that, he then completely bashed the NCAA for banning them from the postseason last year. This dude threw it down, 8 mile style. The Huskies bit the hand that didn’t feed them (three square meals a day).

Napier saw his opportunity and took it.

How does the NCAA respond? Unlimited meals and snacks for student-athletes! The NCAA owes my boy Gabe Ikard $3.83 for penalizing him for eating too much pasta. No, seriously.

I’m not a patriot for student athletes to get paid. Why? Because then Alabama would become the Yankees, and I already hate them both.

But come on! The NCAA has got to realize this isn’t 1906 anymore. Yes, it’s great that these people get free education, but what’s a free education when you don’t have time to actually become educated? Want to study? Got to go to practice. Want to take classes at certain times? Got to go to practice. Want to be a normal college kid? Sorry, got to go to practice.

It’s become laughable in big time college sports to call these athletes, “student-athletes.” Oh really? You’re telling me that those freshmen Kentucky brings in every year are there for that 8 a.m. psychology class, right? No. They’re there to try to win a title, and make the university money. Heaven forbid the kids need a third meal.

John Calipari knows the jig is up.

Pride comes before the fall, and the NCAA is the Roman Empire. It would not be a complete shock to see the NCAA disintegrate. Why would someone play for a league that honestly doesn’t give a damn what happens to them? They don’t care as long as they get their checks. 

Like I said, players shouldn’t get paid. However, if they’re gonna be “student-athletes,” make sure you allow them to actually be students and not just athletes.

ULM Spring Fever

The spring has brought out things so far: shorts, sunglasses and last week, talons.

 

The 2014 ULM Spring Fever consisted of many events intended to bring students out of the dorms and into the sun. The Spring Fever Hangout, Extreme Inflatables and Oozeball were some of the many favorites from the week. The Campus Activities Board puts together the event every year. This year, the slogan for Spring Fever was the phrase, “Talons Out.”

 

CAB Public Relations Officer Kyle Mitchell said they tried to make the event an interactive experience. He said that the events chosen were meant to give students the most fun possible. CAB wanted students “to leave and say that they had the best day!”

 

“We were trying to kind of have a concert festival feel to all of our events. Laid back and relaxed, but exciting and new at the same time.”

 

2014 Spring Fever Poster

 

The week kicked off on Monday with events including the Chalk Walk in the quad and movie night in the grove.

 

Two of the bigger events, the Extreme Inflatables and Spring Fever Hangout took place on Tuesday. The Hangout included free pizza, cotton candy and a live band. Mitchell said that the purpose of the Hangout was to just get students to “come get Spring Fever kicked off.” Tuesday also featured a ski show on Bayou Desiard.

 

Sophomore Kinesiology major Danielle Adams said the Extreme Inflatables was one of her favorite events. She went on to say that the whole week is a great experience, and gave credit to CAB since they “worked around the rainy conditions.”

 

“It’s always so nice to take a break from class or studying and be able to go do something fun on campus.”

 

Wednesday’s main event was the ULM Baseball Crawfish Boil.

 

Panic! At the Disco and 3OH!3 headlined the annual Spring Fever concert. Students packed into the Fant-Ewing Coliseum to take part in the event. Both bands have had multiple successes in the music industry. Panic! At the Disco’s debut album “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out,” was certified double platinum in 2005. 3OH!3’s song “Don’t Trust Me,” reached as high as number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2008.

 

The ULM Spring Fever tradition that may get more attention that any other event took place Friday afternoon. Oozeball proved to be just as popular as ever, with many students choosing to dive into the mud pits to play volleyball.

 

Saturday belonged to ULM sports. The softball team played a double-header against Western Kentucky, the football played the annual Maroon and Gold game and the baseball team hosted Texas State. The “Ready, Set, Glow,” 5K took place Saturday night, and was put on in order to raise money for St. Jude.

 

The week was littered with many smaller events. T-shirts were on sale everyday, there were lunch socials every day other than Friday and many sport events took place throughout the week.

 

CAB was the main sponsor for most of the events, however, many events featured other campus sponsors. The Photography Club, ULM Counseling Center, ULM Activity Center, 31 Ambassadors, Baptist Collegiate Ministry, Catholic Collegiate Ministry and various fraternities and sororities all were involved in putting on the events of Spring Fever.

 

Although most students enjoyed the Spring Fever festivities, some students pointed out ways to make the event even better. The most common advice was for better advertisements of the events.

 

Sophomore Pre-Nursing major Taylor McDermott said she missed many events because of her class schedule and work. She did say that some events were missed simply because she did not know about them.

 

“I never really know what activities are going on campus until I see pictures on social media,” she said.

 

Spring Fever leaves a big impression on many students. For many students, this gives them a chance to make new friends and take a break from the grind of school.

 

Freshman English major Dustin Harper said he really enjoyed his first Spring Fever. He said Oozeball was his favorite event, and that making new friends was the best part about the week.

 

“I look forward to next year and the years to come. I’m blessed to be a part of ULM’s 2014 Spring Fever.”

 

Here is a video talking about Spring Fever.

Icepicks Don’t Go There

Do you like urban legends? I love them. You know, the stories where a boy and girl go parking, hear something scraping the car and find a bloody hook? Yeah, stuff like that. Well, surely you’ve heard the Internet version of stories like these. One of them is the story of two friends that are video chatting. After weird occurrences, some guy in the background jabs one friend with an icepick.

Enter 12-year-old Dakota’s irrational fear of icepicks.

I am happy to say that I have gotten over my fear just recently. Well, to an extent. I am excited to report that the man that went around stabbing Internet strangers with icepick was just giving out free lobotomies. Which, when I think about it, may actually be scarier than the story.

 

What is a lobotomy you may ask? It’s a relatively simple procedure in which they cut into a person’s brain in order to help that person’s mental issues. So simple, in fact, that The Lobotomy Files show that the main advocator of the procedure said that non-surgeons could do it! Just let that sink in for a minute.

The files go on to show that some 2,000 veterans were given the procedure when they came home from wars with PTSD. Everybody in the room can now ask in unison: what?

• First off, whose idea was it in the first place to cut holes in somebody’s head and snip part of their brain? That just sounds like a terrible idea. These doctors were educated and yet defied common sense.
• Secondly, as if the procedure wasn’t bad enough, we decided it would be a good idea to just use an icepick. I’d like to think the exchange went something to the effect of the nurse telling the doctor they were out of scalpels, to which the doctor replied, “That’s okay. Just grab me that icepick and hammer over there in the corner, I’ll make it work!”
•  Third and lastly, can we take a moment to appreciate modern medicine? People literally thought this was a decent enough idea to try it a fairly large number of people. It’s sad to think that what we know can be helped with a hand full of pills, they thought needed a hole in the head.

You know, when we first got assigned to read this, my first thought was: “I’ve only ever heard of a botched lobotomy.” I think I was right. The people that walked out of that procedure aren’t the same ones that walked into it.

Philly Makes Jackson Take Flight

So, it has come time for me to write another blog. There are honestly tons of topics I’d love to hit on. I would love to make a blog on the fact that an 18-year-old can take a bullet for his country, but can’t buy a beer at a bar. March madness is, of course, an absolute blast, but if I’m completely honest, I feel it’s a bit late to write one for that. So I will go with a story that I spent a good part of my day talking about with my dad. Today, I’m going to talk about the life and times of DeSean Jackson.

 

Jackson signed with the Redskins today, and as much as I would love for that to be the story, it’s not. The Eagles decided that, in addition to cutting the man, they would cite his gang ties as a reason for the cut. You’re kidding, right?

 

 

First things first, NFL wideouts are a bunch of divas: Chad Ochocinco Johnson, Terrell Owens, Dez Bryant and the list could go on the length of a Canadian football field. DeSean is no exception. He’s had his legal troubles, but what professional athlete hasn’t these days? 

 

The Eagles cut him because they didn’t want to pay him. That is completely understandable. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. But, to say that his personal life had something to do with it? That’s total bull.

 

Look in the mirror, Philly. Suddenly, your organization is going to be the torchbearers for moral high-ground? I’m sorry, did you forget that you signed Ron Mexico Michael Vick straight out of his stint in jail for dogfighting? Did you conveniently forget that you just resigned Riley Cooper a year after his racial slur controversy? I’m not saying that the organization is wrong for signing Vick and resigning Cooper, but at least try to hide the hypocrisy.

 

DeSean is from Los Angeles. That city isn’t just Hollywood, folks. People are in gangs. They get involved in bad situations. But see, that’s the kicker. Jackson hasn’t been directly involved in any gang activity his friends might partake in. Vick was the head of the dogfighting ring and Cooper was the one who shouted the slur. Sure, maybe Jackson threw up the Crip gang sign at now teammate DeAngelo Hall.

 

 

 

You know who else has thrown a gang sign?

 

• That third base coach who is giving all those signs to the batter. I mean, surely there’s a gang sign in there at one point.
• That fifth grader who thinks it’s cool to spell “Blood” with his fingers.
• Me, yesterday when I tried to pop my knuckles by pressing down on my middle finger with my thumb. I’m pretty sure that’s one.

 

All joking aside, these are the types of people DeSean grew up with. He didn’t control who he grew up with. You can’t blame the guy for still being friends with the people who were there for him from the jump. I’m sure almost every professional athlete has at least one friend with a questionable past. Don’t blame the guy’s friends on that fact that you just don’t want him on the team.

 

Like I said, I hate that this is the story. DeSean is honestly one of my favorite players to watch. I mean, just watch. Oops. Wrong video. I meant to link to the Miracle at the New Meadowlands, which is one of the greatest games I’ve ever watched.

 

For the record, that punter was released by the Giants before the start of the regular season the next year. New York went on to win the Super Bowl. Coincidence?

 

Last thought for the night: As much heat as Richard Sherman gets for being so loud, the guy is actually says some pretty intelligent things, as evident by this blog on this subject. Just don’t try him with a sorry receiver like Crabtree.

Not in Plane Sight

In what has to be considered on of the biggest games of hide-and-seek in modern history, a Boeing 777-300 is stumping the rest of the world. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, an airplane is missing. Somewhere out there, there is a 660,000 pound behemoth that the rest of the world cannot find.

That sounds crazy. That’s because it is. Surely you guys have heard of this. If not, here is a brief rundown, courtesy of CNN.

Surely there is a logical conclusion to this mystery.However, conspiracy theories are just a lot more fun, and this has potential to be the biggest conspiracy since JFK.

A lot of this is simply because we really have no idea what happened. It’s the great modern mystery of this generation.

Things we can do:

• Land on the moon.
• Build nuclear weapons with capabilities to destroy the world with a few well placed shots.
• Talk to someone on the complete opposite side of the Earth in a matter of seconds.

Things we cannot do (apparently):

• Find a giant plane that is lost.

Pardon the sarcasm, but I cannot wrap my head around this. The world has such a vast array of technology. It’s amazing that we’re able to construct these giant planes that fly through the air without too much trouble. Yet, we cannot find this plane.

I understand the world is a huge place. It’s not like they could just disappear. Unless, of course, you subscribe to the aliens theory. It’s been two weeks and we haven’t even found any debris from the plane.

A couple logical explanations are that the plane was stolen or the plane malfunctioned.

If that plane was stolen, let the guy keep it. If a guy is able to steal a Boeing, all the passengers on the plane and leave no trace of his plan, that guy is winning. If the plane and thief is found, I’m calling my local congressman. Why? We need that thief in our military. Can you imagine what that guy could do with some resources? The man stole a plane!

The not so fun explanation is that the plane malfunctioned. I just don’t know if this is actually that viable. Sure, it could have happened. Wouldn’t the pilot get on his radio and yell, “Mayday, mayday! We’re going down!” Something to that effect.

Honestly, I don’t have a clue what happened. I honestly hope that the world finds out, and are able to give the grieving families closure.

On a side note, someone should check out this hot, new lead quick.

Also, check out this Reddit thread where users shared their not so serious ways this mystery could end.

Friday Night Tykes: Where Football is Taken Too Seriously

The state of Texas prides itself on football. Texas football is religion. What a mother is to a child, Texas is to football.  “Friday Night Tykes” shows that maybe Texas takes football a little bit too serious.

I love football. I love Texas football. I have a love/hate relationship with kids. Recipe for a good show, right? No. I hate this show.

I hate everything this show represents. The show stars teams from the Texas Youth Football League. The kids play football against other kids. That’s great. No problems up until right about now.

I couldn’t believe my eyes watching this show. First impressions were actually positive.

“These teams have captains? That’s so cool!”

They turned negative pretty quick.

“Why are they being so serious about this? Is that kid really flipping a tire? I don’t care if he gets up? What kind of coaching is that?”

The kid isn’t J.J. Watt

I hope one day I have kids. I hope that one day my kid runs a 4.4 40 and has a rocket launcher for an arm. However, if this show is displaying what it takes to have your kid be successful, I think I’ll pass on pushing my kids into sports so early.

Examples of some of the problems with the show:

• The parents. Parents deserve the blame in all of these type of shows. “Friday Night Tykes” is basically “Toddlers and Tiaras” for guys. Nothing more than overzealous parents and coaches pushing kids farther than what they should.
• The way the kids are treated. I’m all for trying to get the best out of your kids. I have to draw the line when the coach is telling his players to make the other players bleed. That bring me to my next point.
• The coaches. Football is a game. Period. Youth sports is an amazing thing. These coaches take it way too far. There is a reason these coaches aren’t coaching in the NFL…or college…or high school. They really don’t seem to get that these 9 and 10 year old are kids, not the men you see on Sundays.

I’m glad that I’m not alone on this. Most every article or radio comment I’ve seen about the show all agree that they take things a bit too serious. Even big sports guys like Dan Patrick are embarrassed by the show. When you’ve got sport personalities agreeing on something, you have a problem. “Friday Night Tykes” is definitely a problem.

ULM Mock Trial Team: Lawyer Up

The ULM mock trial team has been busy lately, hosting the first ever Warhawk Mock Trial Jamboree February 16, among many other events.

 The program has been on the rise of late. In only two years of existence, the mock trial program already has two teams, the gold and maroon teams.

Captain of the gold team, senior Jonathan Cobb, says the future is looking good for the program.

“What we were able to accomplish as a second year team is simply amazing. We had the second highest strength of schedule and we gave every team a run for their money.” He said.

ULM is the only public school in the state with a mock trial team. The team travels all over the country competing in competitions in which it simulates a real court case.

Olivia Sage, a sophomore witness on the gold team, says that this has helped spread the word of the university. Travelling all over has helped bring in recruits and showcase the work of the political science department.

The Warhawk Mock Trial Jamboree was the first mock trial event to be held at ULM. Cobb said the team learned from the jamboree and “it was exciting to be able to host ULM’s first mock trial event.”

ULM welcomed the teams from Millsaps College and Mississippi College to Monroe for the competition.

The mock trial program gives the team members valuable experience inside the courtroom. In addition, “mock trial looks superb on a resume,” Sage said.

Many students choose to participate in the mock trial to gain experience before moving on to law school. In addition to looking good on resumes, participating in the mock trial program could be a deciding factor for a potential law school looking at a student.

Raya Boyte, a senior witness on the gold team, talked about how mock trial helps prepare the team members for their respective futures, even those that choose not to apply for law school.

She says that the experience that the mock trials give the members can be valuable and “will help the succeed the professional world.”

Many students choose to participate in the mock trial to gain experience before moving on to law school.

In addition to the competitions, the program has gotten recognition from local law enforcement.

The Ouachita Parish Police Jury and the Sheriff’s Department helped to set up the new functioning courtroom that is located in Stubbs 230.

Having the functional courtroom has helped the students get more comfortable in being in the professional law setting. According to Sage, this has helped the team immensely.

“We have a courtroom which definitely helps with learning the set up. As for court matters we are exposed to what basically equates to court when we compete.

Monroe attorney Robert Noel put the team together in 2013. Noel coaches the gold team, while attorney Kyle more is the head of the maroon team.  

The maroon team’s lawyers are Gary Blaylock, Hilary Solet and Sierra Lovell. The witnesses for the maroon team are Sharmaine Tramble, Nick Rose, Quientinn Smith and Charles Dupree.

The gold team lawyers are Ryan Lloyd, Jonathan Cobb and Gabriel Silva. The witnesses for the gold team are Cheyenne Wilson, Joseph Bamburg, Taylor Ezelle, Raya Boyte, Adam Nettles and Olivia Sage.

The American Mock Trial Association puts on the mock trial competitions. The Association is made up of about 600 teams from over 350 colleges. The organization holds 24 regional tournaments, followed by eight championship tournaments before the season concludes with a national championship tournament.

Boyte says the mock trial program and the university working together to lead the way for public universities in Louisiana sheds good light on ULM.  

“Even thought there has been a number of budget cuts, we are taking the bull by its horn, pushing forward and being initiative. When other schools are stepping back, we refuse to be second best.” She said.

The link to the university website’s story can be found here.

The link to the American Mock Trial Association’s website can be found here.

More Offense, More Whining

It’s a brave new world in college football. The game is getting faster, and the popularity is growing. So what will the NCAA do next? Well change the rules of course!

The NCAA is now entertaining the possibility of putting in a rule that would require offenses to wait at least 10 seconds before snapping the ball. Well, it doesn’t take long to figure out who this rule helps.

My big question is simple: why? Why fix what isn’t broke. Popularity is soaring! My guess is that the coaches that are spearheading this effort just aren’t a fan of up-tempo offenses. Those three coaches are Air Force’s coach Troy Calhoun, Arkansas’s coach Bret Bielema and good ole’ Nick Saban. Their teams placed 104, 121 and 116, respectively, in plays per game in FBS. There’s only 125 teams in FBS.

Rich Rodriguez wins the award for tweet of the day for his take on the issue.

When you snap the ball has always been a fundamental edge for the offense- what's next– 3 downs like Canada?#LetsGetBoring

— Rich Rodriguez (@CoachRodAZ) February 12, 2014

Several reasons offenses should be able to snap the ball whenever they want.

• It makes more teams competitive. Look at teams that have risen to the top in the past decade. Teams like Oregon, Baylor and Texas A&M, teams that have been decent, have now risen to the national stage. Parity is great for college football.
• It’s the offense’s advantage. Offense’s get to choose to snap the ball whenever they want. That’s their advantage. The defenses can run all over the field before the snap. That’s their advantage. Don’t make a change that effects teams that use their advantage to the fullest.
• It will correct itself. Nothing in football lasts forever. There’s a reason no one runs the wishbone anymore. Defenses got smart, got faster and coach’s learned to scheme for it. Eventually the same will happen to the spread.
• It’s fun. Who, other than Nick Saban, doesn’t love fast-paced football? There’s a reason Oregon is such a money draw. Here’s a hint: it’s not just the shiny helmets.

They’ll claim its for player safety, but let’s be honest. It’s politics. Saban has a great quote that shows his stance on it.

“I just think there’s got to be some sense of fairness in terms of asking is this what we want football to be?”

Fairness? How is it not fair? Because that 5-star, 320-pound defensive lineman is dragging in the second half because a spread offense has him running up and down the field all day? But hey, I guess if you can’t beat them, change the rules.

Link to ESPN article with embedded radio clip from “SVP and Russillo,” with guest Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin discussing the potential rule change. http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/10453325/nick-saban-bret-bielema-backed-committee-proposal-slow-rule