[Nick Roush, Omaha =
World Tribune columnist, said that ‘parents and sports usually do =
not mix’. His story, printed last June, shows an exception =
to that rule.]
In 2017 parents =
often confuse “what’s best for their kid” as =
“defending them no matter what.” The sports =
world’s most popular parent, LaVar Ball, first hit the spotlight =
for berating a coach for not giving Lonzo more touches. That type =
of parent is seen as the norm, but the world still has plenty of parents =
who believe in discipline.
Former No. 1 NFL =
draft pick and current ESPN analyst Keyshawn Johnson, pulled his son =
Keyshawn Jr. out of the University of Nebraska to take “an =
extended leave of absence.”
The four-star wide =
receiver came to Nebraska a semester early, but struggled during spring =
ball, making just one catch for seven yards in the spring game. =
His struggles off the field were worse. It culminated with a =
marijuana possession citation in his dorm room. Less than two =
weeks later, Keyshawn Sr. made his son return home to =
California.
“One thing =
you will not do as my son is you will not embarrass Nebraska, you will =
not embarrass [Coach] Mike Riley and you will not embarrass this family. =
If you mature and you’re ready to resume your football career and =
academic goals, then Nebraska will be ready to embrace =
you.”
Some parents might =
defend their kid, deflect the blame or ask for a second chance. =
Not Keyshawn. He dropped the hammer.
But wait, =
there’s more. When Johnson Sr. was asked what Jr. thought =
about the move, he said, “I never asked him. At the end of the =
day, I don’t think that decision was in his hands. He squandered =
that decision. He still wants to play football, and he still wants to =
play for Nebraska. But if you don’t do the things you’re =
supposed to do, under the guidelines of me, it’s not going to =
happen.”
The option to pull =
his son out of school with the ability to return isn’t an option =
all parents have, but Johnson Sr. played for Mike Riley at USC. =
Their longstanding relationship established enough trust from both =
parties, even though the younger Johnson thought it might give him more =
leniency.
“You’ve =
watched — on Instagram, on Facebook, on Twitter — =
everything’s a big party,” Johnson Sr. said. “You just =
want to get to college to party, but you don’t understand: =
You’re playing college football. It’s a business. And =
it’s a serious business. If you want to become successful — =
make it to the NFL — you’ve got to embrace it. You’ve =
got to own it. You don’t make it to the next level by cruising. =
There’s no cruise control.”
“There’s=
no ‘Mike Riley is good friends with Keyshawn, so his son’s =
automatically going to play.’ That’s not the game. =
That’s not why he went to Nebraska. He went there to work his tail =
off. To have an opportunity to be successful. But when you don’t =
do that — and you squander that — what are you going to =
do?”
As a 25-year old, =
normally I don’t cater to the “back in my day was =
better” folks, but the world needs more discipline like =
this. All too often parents do not force children to take =
responsibility for their actions. It may briefly benefit the =
child, but it does nothing but cause harm in the long =
run.
Keyshawn Johnson =
Sr. is holding his son accountable for his actions, a lesson a few =
parents should learn sooner rather than later.
~~
Dr Bob =
Griffin
[email protected] www.grif.net =
"Jesus Knows Me, This I =
Love!"