OSU football: Mike Gundy’s difficult decisions
When the Oklahoma State Cowboys convene later this week, Mike Gundy will talk about proper behavior and the ramifications of embarrassing the university and the distractions that can plague a football when one of its players runs afoul of the law.
Again. Gundy says he constantly pounds that message into his players, even in the summers, when he’s not allowed to watch his team work out. Gundy said that, on average, he addresses his players every other Friday during the summer. Talks about seven minutes, and 31/2 of those minutes are about acting right and doing right.
That still hasn’t kept some Cowboys from finding trouble. In the last few days, defensive end Jamie Blatnick was charged with felony assault, and Victor Johnson twice was arrested, once for a DUI and once for obstructing an officer; after the latter arrest, marijuana was found in his residence.
Jamie Blatnick (50) during the college football game between the Oklahoma State University Cowboys (OSU) and the Grambling State University Tigers (GSU) at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, September 26, 2009. Photo by Doug Hoke, The Oklahoman
Gundy said he’ll announce something soon on Johnson’s football status, but it might take awhile longer on Blatnick. A felony charge is completely different from a misdemeanor, Gundy said.
The best guess is that Johnson will serve some sort of suspension that is not likely to cost him the 2010 season. Blatnick’s future seems much more in jeopardy. He is charged with breaking a beer bottle in the face of former teammate Steve Denning, in a campus-area bar. Football is a little beside the point on this one. Blatnick will be scrambling to stay out of jail on that charge.
“Guys make mistakes,” Gundy said. “I don’t believe in putting a guy on the road for making a mistake.”
But Gundy also said it’s a privilege to play and coach at OSU, and “if there’s a guy headed in the wrong direction and doesn’t care about changing, they’re leaving.”
Perhaps it’s not fair, but compounding any decision — for any coach — is the reputation of the school and what’s happened in recent years. Gundy drew much heat, deservedly so, for allowing linebacker Chris Collins to enroll in school and play for the Cowboys, when Collins was under a rape indictment. When Collins pled guilty, Gundy was forced to remove Collins from the squad.
More recently, receiver Bo Bowling was charged in February 2009 with marijuana possession with intent to distribute, among other drug charges. After the state’s prime witness, Bowling’s former girlfriend, declined to testify, Bowling pled guilty to reduced misdemeanor charges but was dismissed from the team.
Last spring, Gundy allowed Bowling back on the team, as a non-scholarship player.
Gundy said he considers such decisions his to make, that they are part of the responsibility of being a head coach. “It’s not any fun for me,” Gundy said, “but I have to make those decisions.”
I asked Gundy if the recent events would make him think about further restrictions on his other players. For instance, no players on the Strip after midnight. The Strip is a series of night spots on Washington Street.
“I am not a firm believer in saying to the other 120 guys on our team, ‘You can’t live the life a normal college student,’” Gundy said. “I just don’t feel like you can do that. How can I punish the other 119 guys for one guy making a terrible decision?”
That’s an honorable thought. But truth is, college football players at this level are not normal college students. They have costs and benefits that are totally foreign to most college students, and to pretend otherwise is sort of silly. Imposing restrictions in the forms of curfew or bans from certain establishments would only add to the unique responsibilities that go with being a college football player.
-------------Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel. Visit Berry's website here.
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Comments
coach gundy needs to realize people go to college football games to watch kids, young men, represent their schools in an honorable manner. if certain ones get let off after being charged with something unlawful, what effect will that have on the good players? if gundy wants fans to respect him, get rid of these types of players, there are too many in school who want to do the right thing and play college football.
Don’t know all the facts. Only what has been printed. However, in my opinion, Gundy has been very close to losing control of his teams for the last two or three years. Last year, there were great expectations. Loss of Bryant and Cox (Cotton Bowl) were very unfortunate.
Gundy would never be the guy I’d hire as a head coach if I owned a college football program, but I don’t begrudge him on any of these issues with the way players behave. OU has these problems, Texas has these problems, Kansas basketball has these problems…everyone has these problems because coaches everywhere are under enormous pressure TO WIN. Not to graduate players, not to develop functional human beings who are productive citizens…but to win football games. If I were Gundy I’d kick both of them off the football team and leave it at that. But Chris Collins plaed right up to the last moment against Texas before due process played itself out. This is a great opportunity for Gundy to put coachspeak over to the side and send a message.
With a top down approach, Gundy talks to them every day about things they shouldn’t do.
Gundy can’t see punishing all for the actions of one.
Rather than being the chosen one all his life then personalizing that experience in his attempts at leadership and personnel management, a stint in the Military and enduring some Basic Training would have served Gundy well.
When an individual messes up, the Drill Sargent doesn’t make the entire Platoon do push ups or run another mile because he’s unfair. He does so to build the concept of Team and to establish bottom up enforcement of rules and expectations.
The Drill Sargent’s commander doesn’t point to the individual that messed up. He points to the Drill Sargent and the Team (Platoon).
Be they good or bad, individuals don’t act the Team does. The actions of one reflects on the Team and therefor the actions of one is the action of the Team. Once Team is established, teammates enforce the rules themselves, bottom up. When they all are punished for the actions of one, peer enforcement of the rules of conduct is a guaranteed result.
The big brother is punished for allowing the little brother to do that. The big brother gains a sense of responsibility for his younger sibling and the little brother gains the sense of responsibility that his wrongful actions hurt his big brother and his family.
With those cooped senses of responsibility grows brotherhood, comradery, family, and Team.
Based upon Gundy’s own words, one can’t help but wonder if he’s not absolutely clueless.
We don’t have a Team. We have a General advising a bunch of loosely knit individuals who feel no responsibility for each other not to do bad things on a daily basis.
No wonder Cox repeatedly broke curfew in Dallas.
Holy cow!
Blind fold them and put them in a car, nekkid, driven by Eddie Sutton and let Byron Houston sit next to them.
Just because incidents such as this happen at OU,Texas, wherever don’t make it acceptable. I hold my Cowboys to a higher standard. Win or lose.
Get the proper information and make a swift decision accordingly.
“Imposing restrictions in the forms of curfew or bans from certain establishments would only add to the unique responsibilities that go with being a college football player.”
Yeah, great idea. While we’re at it, let’s ban them from going to any establishment that provides alcohol. No restaurants or any other social functions that may have it there. But then again, somebody may go to a gas station and buy beer. So let’s ban them from going to gas stations too. Well, then somebody could simply bring them beer to their house. In that case, let’s lock them in a highly secured room with no outside communication whatsoever and only let them out to go to class and practice. Perfect.
Or maybe we should just realize that these are 17-21 year old kids and they will make mistakes regardless of any ban placed. They’ll either learn from their mistakes and become better persons or they won’t and they’ll get the boot.
Part of the player/coach relationship is developing trust. You cannot build that trust if you are placing bans that prevent the players the opportunity to build it.