Gaming

Another week, another article about an athlete committing a not-so-bright crime. Another flurry of hastily written articles (dare I say, editorials?) lamenting the student athlete's descent into barbarism. So, to the list of shoplifting, simple assault, aggravated assault, and trespassing, add the theft of six pizzas and a small warming oven. The university community is reeling with the implication that some people among us are less than honest!

It's awfully easy to pick on the student athlete. They get priority registration, free tutoring, and a full ride. And, for that, year after year we get, in return for our troubles, a trip to the Poulan-Weedeater Independence Bowl and tossed by some Midwestern state in the first round of the NCAA tournament. See how naturally it comes?

But, dammit, it's not fair. Sure, sometimes the crimes are pretty serious. Nobody should ignore the fact that a basketball recruit slashed a guy's face. Nobody should let Courtney Alexander beat his girlfriend and walk because it looks like a good season. But the athletic department didn't ignore these incidents, and both players are no longer with the U.Va. basketball team, once felony charges were pressed. But often, crimes -- like the shoplifting of Tommy Hilfiger jackets and the recent pizza theft -- are just stupid. And occasionally -- like the Harold Deane trespassing charge -- the crimes are just bullshit.

The point being, of course, that student athletes have a surprisingly good record here, probably better than that of the whole student population. And despite whatever bitterness I might or might not hold about the fact that athletics are generally overfunded while the music department is in a shambles, I can't deny that the athletic department has done a good job of dealing with its student athletes. U.Va. graduation rates for athletes are among the highest in the country.

Sure, there are areas of improvement. Some sports, baseball and any non-basketball women's sports among them, are treated with cruel ambivalence by the department and fans alike. All the money rolling in from football and basketball deservedly support these smaller teams, but some say we should reinvest more money in the sports that make it. I say what's wrong with milking these fertile cash cows for our own purposes, even beyond athletics? More academic scholarships, anyone? How 'bout some more performance space? This one's on Ronald Curry, cause the sports teat won't run dry until David Harrison, Carl Smith, and George Welsh are pushing up weeds. And once we've already got the best weight room in the country, what more do we need to attract high-class athletes, aside from gold-trimmed Lexuses and a thirty-year treasury bond? (That last one was my fault.)

So no more detailed descriptions of how every student athlete is going straight to hell. They've done exceptionally well with a $25 million grant, a well-drained, natural grass field, and the unqualified support of the administration and the state as a whole. They don't need your criticism.

Viewpoint consists of the majority opinion of the managing board of The Declaration and is written by the executive editor on a weekly basis.