BENJAMIN YOUNG
Staff Writer
It’s about time the Eagles said goodbye to Terrell Owens. While his accomplishments on the field are noteworthy, his conduct off the field has been akin to a second rate WWE try-out tape. A locker room smackdown? Please. Owens is a bum and I applaud the Eagles for finally taking a stand and dealing with the issue at hand.
In a perfect world, the NFL owners would get together and swing a deal so that T.O. would never play ball again. But let’s be honest for a second – the NFL, like the NBA, the MLB, and so on, runs on the bottom line and players like T.O. can be good for the bottom line.
Unfortunately for us in the civilized world, Owens probably will be back next year. My money says next year he’ll be playing for the Oakland Raiders – indeed, they are proficient in picking up vagrants and bums. Look no further than their owner, Mr. Al Davis, for proof of this.
I suppose this brings up the bigger issue of how players ought to conduct themselves off the court. I touched on this briefly with my column a few weeks ago, and because that’s not really an exciting or juicy thing about which to write, I’m making the executive decision to bury this theme.
But before I fully move past this, I have something important I must say. I have been around sports a lot and I have been a fan of Pepperdine sports for my four years, but the Neanderthal-like behavior of the UCLA men’s volleyball team in attendance for the Pepperdine vs. UCLA women’s volleyball match Tuesday night, was some of the worst fan behavior I have ever seen. Perhaps it was the profanity they hurled at our team. Perhaps it was the lewd comments they yelled at people in the stands. Hands down, this was one of the ugliest bunch of individuals I’ve seen at a sporting match this side of the crazies that pack in on Sundays to watch Eagles games.
Time out. You’re probably thinking that I hate Philadelphia and things Philly. Well, you are wrong. I just hate all things Philadelphia sports, especially the 76ers. But the Eagles are right up there toward the top of the list. And Eagles fans? They throw batteries and ice balls at Santa for goodness sake. But, come to think of it, I sort of like the Phillies. I mean, come on people, they played the illustriously pudgy John Kruk.
Time in. After the boys (I hesitate to use the word “men” because what kind of men come to a women’s volleyball game and take our their frustration about having a severe case of big-game impotence by screaming at our team?) finished up their tirade, they went out to the Firestone parking lot and threw trash cans around until they were done acting like primates. Throwing trash cans around a parking lot? What does that sound like? Oh yes, a second rate WWE try-out tape. And since they’re clearly losers both on and off the court (especially the particularly savage, really tall, really scrawny one whose face lit up with the red splotches every time he opened his mouth), I would like to be the first to wish them luck in their pursuit of wrestling greatness. Really, Bruins, have some class.
11-10-2005
