Saul: Supporitng BYU’s honor code

In the world of college sports, poor behavior among athletes on scholarship is all too… In the world of college sports, poor behavior among athletes on scholarship is all too prominent.

Just recently, our own University was put under the public magnifying glass when CBS and Sports Illustrated compiled a collaborative report revealing that nearly one quarter of Pitt’s scholarship football players had a criminal record.

Unfortunately, in many instances, the pressures of the lucrative sports industry lead to schools giving top athletes a slap on the wrist when they deserve jail time.

That’s why a couple of weeks ago, when I heard that Brigham Young University was suspending basketball starting center Brandon Davies for the remainder of the season, I was shocked.

BYU, which at the time of the suspension was ranked No. 3 in the country, forced Davies off the court for violating the school’s honor code. His crime? Having sex with his girlfriend, which the honor code prohibits.

Davies, who was averaging 11.1 points and 6.2 rebounds, is a key player for the Cougars, who were trounced by New Mexico 82-64 in their first game without him.

His suspension seriously threatens the school’s potential National Championship. If the team exits early from the upcoming NCAA Tournament because it is missing its star center, all of the players who have worked hard and obeyed the rules will miss out on a once in a lifetime opportunity to win a National Championship.

Yet the school’s alumni have come out strongly in support of the university’s decision to suspend Davies.

“Sorry, I’m choking up a bit here,” Philadelphia sportscaster Vai Sikahema, a former NFL return specialist who played for BYU in the mid-1980s, told Time Magazine. “It’s just hard for me to express just how immensely proud I am of my university.”

That’s right: proud. Well guess what, Mr. Sikahema, I’m proud too. I’m proud of you and all the other BYU alumni who have come out in support of your university while the general public has frowned upon its decision. You have to have a special kind of respect for a school that sticks to its principles.

BYU’s honor code, which requires students to “live a chaste and virtuous life,” also says that those enrolled must abstain from alcoholic beverages, tobacco, tea and coffee, as well as substance abuse.

Once this honor code was made public, there was a bit of an uproar. Prohibiting college students from sex, alcohol, caffeine and tobacco? It sounds tyrannical and unrealistic. But considering the school is owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it’s a code widely respected and still adhered to by many current BYU students and alumni as well as members of the faith in general.

So my question is, how can you defend Davies’ actions? Yes, he’s a college student with raging hormones. Yes, people make mistakes. I don’t think he did anything wrong. I feel sympathy for him and his teammates who will pay the price.

But hey, this kid is good. He could have played for a hundred other Division I programs, but he chose BYU. Like 98 percent of the BYU student body, Davies is a Mormon. Like 100 percent of the BYU student body, Davies knew exactly what the honor code contained.

“The honor code is an essential part of your recruitment to BYU,” Hall of Fame quarterback and ESPN analyst Steve Young, who played at BYU from 1981-83, told Time Magazine. “It’s not like you find out later, ‘Oh, you didn’t tell me! I didn’t know that!’ But there’s a spirit on campus that is just, ‘OK, fine, now let’s go have a good time.’”

By suspending Davies, BYU sent a message to the entire college sporting world that was very clear: Athletes should be held responsible for their actions just like everyone else.

In fact, athletes’ public exposure should increase their roles as positive representations of both their universities and themselves. This year, a Robert Morris player from Pittsburgh got a four-game suspension after receiving a DUI charge.

In February, two players from Marshall University were charged with battery over a bar fight — they played in a game the next evening.

Even on the field, players have broken common moral codes of conduct and been excused. Two years ago, a University of Florida football player intentionally gouged an opponent’s eyes. He was suspended for one half of a game.

The truth is that Brigham Young University made the right decision — it held a student-athlete accountable for his mistakes and took the correct line of action when it needed to. My only hope is that the rest of the college sports world follows its lead.