DI athletes face repercussions for conduct

Rob Dauster Guest Columnist

Despite the recent successes of the two programs, recent headlines involving the University of Connecticut’s and University of Missouri’s men’s basketball teams in the last two weeks have had more to do with suspension then shooting hoops.

At Missouri, four basketball players were suspended after a night out that ended in a fight and landed a fifth member of the team in the hospital with a severely broken jaw. The four uninjured players all missed at least one game for what Head Coach Mike Anderson called a violation of team rules by breaking curfew.

At UConn, two underage players were suspended after they were found in a parked car with two bottles of liquor. A small amount of marijuana was discovered near their car, and when the players were tested for drugs, one of them, Jerome Dyson, tested positive. As a result, Dyson received a mandatory 30-day suspension for his second positive drug test during his time at UConn.

Losing key players due to suspension is detrimental, especially in the thick of conference play where every game matters. UConn has won three straight games in the midst of their suspensions, while Missouri lost to Big 12 doormat Nebraska in the game during which their players were suspended. Shortly after, two players were reinstated and allowed to play against Kansas State University, who the team defeated.

Suspensions don’t just weigh heavily on teams, but individual players as well. For players with professional aspirations, missing significant game time not only damages their reputation, but can cost them huge sums of money in losing a potential National Bastketball Association contract. These players get blasted in the media since as Division I they are the face of their universities.

Athletes in power-house college teams are held to a higher standard than normal college students, and they should be conscious of that, but is it fair to punish them for doing exactly what their non-athlete counterparts are?

Kyle Magnus ’08, a center on Vassar’s men’s basketball team, thinks so. “When you’re an athlete, especially at a Division I school, you have to be aware of the higher standards you are held to. Fair or not, if you play at a place like UConn, that has had to deal with behavior problems, you need to know any mistake is going to be all over ESPN.”

Teammate Tyson Brazell ’08 echoed this sentiment. “When you break the rules and break the law, there is a risk you could get caught and face repercussions. A punishment is fair as long as it fits the crime.”

Players at Vassar face the same issues and temptations that they do at a UConn or at Missouri. Men’s basketball Head Coach Mike Dutton said that, in general, he follows policies laid out in the Student-Athlete Handbook. Essentially, any infraction involving alcohol requires a mandatory one-game suspension, and any arrest results in an indefinite suspension at the discretion of the coach and the athletic director, although the length of suspensions can be changed on a case-by-case basis.
In a timing situation, such as breaking curfew or coming late to practice, infractions would result in getting benched for a half or full game.

However, under Vassar’s proposed drug policy, the punishment for second-time offense would be much more strict. Just for a first-time offense, a Vassar athlete would be suspended for an entire year, while Dyson only received a 30-day suspension for his second positive test.

Athletes at major conference Division I schools, regardless of their sport, are playing with much different intentions than athletes at a Division III school such as Vassar. Many competitors at the Division I level (the majority of whom are on full athletic scholarships) are playing to further a career in sports—be it a professional contract or a shot at the Olympics. With the exception of a select few, Division III athletes play simply for the love of their sport and don’t receive athletic scholarships.

Regardless, it still hurts to miss games and watch your teammates play. And although Vassar is not paying for their athletes’ education, wearing a Brewers jersey still means that you are representing the College, and with that comes a certain level of responsibility.