Johns’ arrest no cause for celebration
One of the more distasteful elements of the Auburn-Alabama rivalry (and others rivalries, I’m sure) is the celebration on one side when something bad happens to the other. It’s particularly distasteful when the celebration is about something bad happening to a college student who happens to be an athlete.
It happens, of course, on both sides. The latest example is the arrest of Alabama linebacker Jimmy Johns on felony charges of selling cocaine.
If Johns is guilty, he deserves whatever punishment the court deems appropriate. Coach Nick Saban did the only he thing he could do in kicking him off the team. On top of all that, a web site surfaced on which Johns was using his status as an Alabama football player in an attempt to sell pit bulls. That’s a flagrant violation of NCAA rules.
Yes, you wonder why Alabama has had 10 players arrested in the last year and a half. Yes, you wonder how, if the charges are accurate, he could be selling drugs so openly and never get the attention of anyone in athletic department. But there’s nothing worth celebrating in any of this.
al.com
6/26/08
Magnolia Tribune
