When do I ever talk about the University of Iowa unless we are playing them? Honestly, hardly ever. I mean, there's been a time here or there, but I'm just learning all of the ribbing is a waste of time. Maybe it would entertain some of you, but honestly, I just do not have the energy for it. When doing that, the upside is pretty small, and the downside is huge.
So breaking away from laying off Iowa, something I've done for nearly a year or so, I'm going to give my two cents on the DJK situation, and then I'm going to leave it at that after this. It's a story that really riles up a lot of emotions for me, and I'm not even a fan of the team he plays on. To me, this is something bigger than football.
First, it saddens me that somebody as talented and fortunate as he was, spends his time and energy outside of football, outside of school, to be destructive to the community. This is a guy who grew up in the projects, was adopted in grade school, and given opportunities to life that many kids with a similar background would not have. Had he not been as fortunate, he may not have even made it through his childhood. He definitley would not have ended up in college. I think it is too bad that he is not on the maturity level, given everything he's gone through to try and take life more seriously. He knows first hand the challenges and the struggle. That's huge. He can relate to so many people, making him more credible than most who do try and help out kids and the community. He's just somebody who would have been able to get through and really make an impact in somebody's life, if he wanted to. He could be a postive role model for somebody out there that doesn't feel like a person out there can relate. It's just too bad.
Secondly, it is clear the guy has some problems. And for his sake, I hope he learns his lesson and gets help. Lots of jokes out there about this situation, but it's sad. Yes I know college kids party and do drugs. Yes I know college athletes in many cases are no different. Regardless, that doesn't make it OK, and I think it's too bad. Maybe that sounds too Mr. Rogers but it's the way I feel. There are thousands of people out there, had they had the opportunities DJK had, they would have gone on and really made a difference in the world. There are people out there that would kill for it. And no, I'm not talking about the football aspect. I'm talking about the good education, safe place to live, a loving family, a free college education aspect of his opportunities; the more important things. I could care less if he makes it to the NFL. That doesn't make somebody more successful in life per se, or make them better than anybody else (despite what NFL players may think). I just hope for him, that he gets his act together, learns from this, and thinks about the power and impact he can make in this world. He could really take a lot of the energy he spent doing "extracurricular activies" and make a difference in this world. If you can prevent 1 person from going to jail or getting into drugs, to me that's a success. I hope he gets the help, pays his dues, learns, and matures as a person. It'd be a heck of a story.
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