This is one of the things I can’t get past. Regardless of your opinions of the legality of ICE, there are millions of people who watch these videos and cheer on these agents and are legitimately convinced that when they approach the pearly gates, Jesus will be like “yep, that’s what I wanted you to support.”
It’s clear that GM is now the second most important role in the entire program. It would frankly be inexcusable for a program of our caliber to not engage in a nationwide search to find the most competent person for the job. There might have been a time when “GM” was simply a cushy title for someone more like a chief of staff to the head coach, but those days are gone.
One of the core issues is that shit like this is almost inevitable given the segment of the population that self-selects themselves to become ICE agents. There’s no historic prestige associated with the organization. There’s no “I got an education” for enrolling. There’s nobody who is keeping a family tradition alive by joining a 20-year old organization. The ONLY humans on the planet who would consider joining this group are ones who inherently see value in getting “others” out of this country by any means necessary. That is a very specific subset of the population, and the Venn diagram between those people and ones who have the proper demeanor to be a law enforcement officer is almost guaranteed to be two separate circles. This is an experiment designed to fail.
They should make the transfer portal like fantasy football waiver wire claims. Once you enter, every team in the country gets 48 hours to put in a bid and the highest bidder wins, no questions asked. Tie goes to the team with the worse record last year. If nobody bids, then your previous team has the option to take you back, with a 50% pay cut fee for being a dumbass. The uncertainty behind the destination would make some of these kids think twice about playing games. (Not a serious suggestion but would at least provide a little structure.)
Remember how shocking that Sports Illustrated interview was? It was so absurd to hear someone famous talking like that publicly. Now, you could copy and paste Rocker’s quotes to the president’s Twitter feed and nobody would even bat an eye.
A murder was captured on film yesterday from multiple different angles and you’ve got the President and VP publicly lying about what is on film and tens of millions lining up behind them to cheer the murderer on. We are so far past the ability to Instagram our way out of this.
Not gonna touch the MAGA stuff (although I’ve had similar thoughts with a number of my “favorites”), but this occurring during the middle of Portal Kombat really emphasized how shortsighted some of these transferring kids are being. There’s no doubt in my mind that Jordan has made more money due to his connection with the Longhorn fanbase than he ever did in the NFL. The last 48 hours has shown ann entire fanbase and city rally around someone who hasn’t worn a jersey in fifteen years. I know some folks scoff at those of us who are lamenting the current state of the sport, but the real emotional connections that we all have with our alma mater genuinely do open up opportunities for players that are usually reserved only for HOFers in professional leagues. I think many of the players who view CFB as simply an opportunity to maximize earnings during their four years on campus are going to look back with regret at their indifference to the “soft” side of college athletics and the part that makes this sport feel like more than simply a minor league system.
None of this will change until ICE agents actively fear for their safety. I’m NOT encouraging it or saying it should happen, and I agree that a riot is exactly what the Trump admin wants, but the reality is that these guys feel bulletproof right now.
Seems bonkers for us to be wasting any time on high school kids after watching the portal madness unfold. I know we have to out of principle, but what a wasted effort most of this will turn out to be.
To be clear, there’s no true “souring” outside of us message board recruiting losers as of yet. The “souring” will come in the field next year if we are unable to plug some of these holes over the next week.