I don't even know the guy but I wouldn't hesitate to say
that Marcus Lattimore is a great guy. By stopping and thinking about
the magnifying glass that all big name collegiate athletes currently live
under, you quickly realize that these kids are under heavy scrutiny. Lattimore
is a prime example of a guy who has passed the judgment of fans, media,
classmates, professors, and many other opinions of the twitter world, and for
that I commend him. His character must be everything that it is advertised to
be, because if it wasn't and he didn't cross the street at the right time on
the wrong day then we would all be talking about that as opposed to his
character and injured knee.
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| (Photo: By Jeff Blake, US Presswire) |
It is a shame that
such current athletes aren't commended by the media or the public eye on an
equal level as their counterpart screw ups. We as fans are so quick to jump on
board of the latest NCAA violation or run in with the law that we forget about
the purity of collegiate athletics. The molding of NCAA Football in this post
TV contract era is easily seen from one Saturday to the next. Players are
getting away with touchdown and defensive celebrations that those who wore the
same jerseys ten years ago would have been penalized severely. This
coming from someone who is roughly the same age as the athletes on those fields
signifies a dramatic shift in not just one sport but all NCAA fields of
competition.
What happened to
Lattimore this weekend was very unfortunate. I wish him a speedy recovery and
hope that his road to recovery still opens the door to an opportunity to play
in the NFL, as I am sure that has been a childhood dream of his.
