Teammates: Davis made decision to sit out

[McLoofus 35,182]

On 1/23/2018 at 2:01 PM, abw0004 said:

Maybe, give or take, you never know how somebody's feeling, though. You don't know how his body was feeling.

Just wanted to highlight this part of Matthews's quote one more time, because I'm not sure everyone processed it.

It seems Davis was medically cleared to play, but that doesn't mean he was 100%. A less-than 100% player might not only not contribute as much as he normally would, but also might leave himself more susceptible to injury. 

Kerryon Johnson played at less than 100% in the SECCG. Sealed the loss with an uncharacteristic fumble. And I love Tray Matthews. LOVE him. But sometimes playing at less than 100% isn't always the best idea.

[lionheartkc 6,150]

2 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

You sure about that? Honest question. I've never seen the paperwork. 

If the players do in fact have some sort of legal obligation to play that goes beyond them potentially forfeiting their scholarship, then the system is even more heavily flawed to their detriment than I thought and I would once again have to question my allegiance to this sport.

Put another way, what you're suggesting is majorly f***ed up. Not the possibility that a coach might actually pursue that kind of action, but the possibility that it would be even remotely possible from a legal perspective. 

I totally disagree. I think it would be "f***ed up" for a coach to go after a kid, but a contract is a contract and I personally think it's important that we not set a precedent that contracts should be able to be broken, without some sort of reparation, because one party feels that they would benefit from it. That's why coaches have to pay if they leave early and schools have to pay if they fire a coach early. Breaking a business contract lands you in court. It's not fun, but when you sign the dotted like, you are making a gentleman's agreement to make good on your part. I guess if they want to sit out the game, and drop out of school so that the school no longer has to keep up their end of the contract, you could argue that is fair, but I've yet to see a single player do that.

Look, I get it, and I don't want to punish a kid for protecting their future, even if the odds are astronomically against anything disastrous happening. At the same time, I cringe every time we let kids get away with stuff in college that they would not get away with as an adult. Let's face it, if a player decided to sit out an NFL game for any other reason that he was undeniably unable to play, there would be consequences.

[aujeff11 6,243]

7 minutes ago, DAG said:

Doesn’t make sense to me.  CD, for the last 3 years, have his body and soul to AU. 

Arguably, you could also say he gave his mind, body, and soul to achieve the NFL and Auburn was merely the means to the end. The fact that he left as soon as possible and even sat out a game to make sure he could get to the NFL brings a tad more validity to my possibility.

[AUsince72 11,084]

30 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

How about "provider".

I see what you did there 

[aujeff11 6,243]

2 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Kerryon Johnson played at less than 100% in the SECCG. Sealed the loss with an uncharacteristic fumble.

lol. The fumble was because he didn’t see the  defender and the defender poked it out. That’s quite an assumption that the injury caused the fumble.

[DAG 33,982]

3 minutes ago, lionheartkc said:

I totally disagree. I think it would be "f***ed up" for a coach to go after a kid, but a contract is a contract and I personally think it's important that we not set a precedent that contracts should be able to be broken, without some sort of reparation, because one party feels that they would benefit from it. That's why coaches have to pay if they leave early and schools have to pay if they fire a coach early. Breaking a business contract lands you in court. It's not fun, but when you sign the dotted like, you are making a gentleman's agreement to make good on your part. I guess if they want to sit out the game, and drop out of school so that the school no longer has to keep up their end of the contract, you could argue that is fair, but I've yet to see a single player do that.

Look, I get it, and I don't want to punish a kid for protecting their future, even if the odds are astronomically against anything disastrous happening. At the same time, I cringe every time we let kids get away with stuff in college that they would not get away with as an adult. Let's face it, if a player decided to sit out an NFL game for any other reason that he was undeniably unable to play, there would be consequences.

Do you really think Jimbo Fisher paid anything when he left FSU? The coaches rarely if at all pay when they leave their previous institution. So now you want to punish the player?

[bigbird 60,525]

And if presented with the same decision, millionaire or play one last game, I'm pretty confident which the majority, if being honest, would take.

[McLoofus 35,182]

4 minutes ago, lionheartkc said:

I totally disagree. I think it would be "f***ed up" for a coach to go after a kid, but a contract is a contract and I personally think it's important that we not set a precedent that contracts should be able to be broken, without some sort of reparation, because one party feels that they would benefit from it. That's why coaches have to pay if they leave early and schools have to pay if they fire a coach early. Breaking a business contract lands you in court. It's not fun, but when you sign the dotted like, you are making a gentleman's agreement to make good on your part. I guess if they want to sit out the game, and drop out of school so that the school no longer has to keep up their end of the contract, you could argue that is fair, but I've yet to see a single player do that.

Look, I get it, and I don't want to punish a kid for protecting their future, even if the odds are astronomically against anything disastrous happening. At the same time, I cringe every time we let kids get away with stuff in college that they would not get away with as an adult. Let's face it, if a player decided to sit out an NFL game for any other reason that he was undeniably unable to play, there would be consequences.

Again, don't play, don't get a scholly. I get that. More money on top of that? Nope. Nuh uh. No way in hell. 

[aubiefifty 16,791]

 i hate the foxhole thing. it is not war it is a football game. lets not try and pretend it is. if the young man was in the military and fighting for his country i am willing to bet he does what he can to protect his brothers. there is one hell of a difference. some of you are shaming the kid over a response you have no idea how he would act.

[keesler 5,924]

2 hours ago, weagl1 said:

I have a hard time classifying a New Years Day bowl against an undefeated opponent as “meaningless”.  Is every game other than a playoff game or one that gets you into a playoff game now meaningless?  If that’s the case why don’t we just do the whole season as a playoff.   Just play 5 exhibitions like the pros then seed the season of 128 or whatever the number of teams here are these days.  128-64-32-16-8-4–2-1.  There you go.  It would take 7 games to determine the champion.  Then the truly meaningless exhibitions would be played at the beginning of the season and everything else would be meaningful.  Of course, the great rivalries that have made game what it is would mostly go away but occasionally Auburn/Alabama and Auburn/Georgia might be a really meaningful game if they happen to meet in the playoff.  And, of course, they could also meet in one of the exhibitions but those would be meaningless so I doubt anyone would show up to watch.  

I have a feeling this whole "bowls are meaningless" crowd would be singing a different tune if our HC wasn't sitting at 1-4 in bowl games.  Seriously, wouldn't we be proud to celebrate wins over FSU, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, and undefeated UCF teams right now?  Gus' job would have never been in question had he won all of his bowl games.  

Bowls have been trivialized because the only one AU has won in the last 5 yrs was on freaking Legion Field against a coachless Memphis team.

 

[lionheartkc 6,150]

10 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Again, don't play, don't get a scholly. 

One could argue that they had already gotten the benefit of the scholarship for that semester.

In any case, it's all a hypothetical, but I still think it's important to teach these kids that, if you sign the dotted line, no matter what they situation, you have an obligation.

[aujeff11 6,243]

2 minutes ago, keesler said:

I have a feeling this whole "bowls are meaningless" crowd would be singing a different tune if our HC wasn't sitting at 1-4 in bowl games.  Seriously, wouldn't we be proud to celebrate wins over FSU, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, and undefeated UCF teams right now?  Gus' job would have never been in question had he won all of his bowl games.  

Bowls have been trivialized because the only one AU has won in the last 5 yrs was on freaking Legion Field against a coachless Memphis team.

 

I agree with most of this, but the importance of the bowl games have been attacked nationwide as more often than not, there are many empty seats and uninspiring performances.

Do what I said, let the redshirts play four games and then this whole question of importance goes away. I think the rule could save bowl season. It would be even cooler if the redshirts could only play one game,  the bowl game. Think about how many schools would like that...

[lionheartkc 6,150]

4 minutes ago, keesler said:

Bowls have been trivialized because the only one AU has won in the last 5 yrs was on freaking Legion Field against a coachless Memphis team.

Bowls have been trivialized because there are 500 of them and, outside of the 2 playoff bowls and the championship bowl, winning one doesn't get anyone anything except the coaches who get their bonuses.

[DAG 33,982]

I don’t understand why comprehension is so bad. I think what Big Bird, McLoofus and I are trying to impart is the bowl game would do nothing for one individual, who is arguably , an unanimous first round draft pick. He has established his mark. There aren’t many first round draft projects in college football. If you aren’t projected to be in that first round, you absolutely should be playing in that bowl game , to improve your draft stock as much as possible. Quite frankly, a good many of them did the opposite. Hopefully, they are showing out at senior bowl and these other practices. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

2 minutes ago, lionheartkc said:

One could argue that they had already gotten the benefit of the scholarship for that semester.

In any case, it's all a hypothetical, but I still think it's important to teach these kids that, if you sign the dotted line, no matter what they situation, you have an obligation.

They get taught that in plenty of ways. I'd argue that a D1 athlete in year 3 knows a lot more about obligations than the vast majority of students.

If there's an accountability problem in college football, there are many, many groups of people who need to be addressed before the players. 

[aujeff11 6,243]

13 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

 i hate the foxhole thing. it is not war it is a football game. lets not try and pretend it is. if the young man was in the military and fighting for his country i am willing to bet he does what he can to protect his brothers. there is one hell of a difference. some of you are shaming the kid over a response you have no idea how he would act.

Hey shiny hook, I’m a fish, and I find your horrible attempt of luring me in arrogantly unsuccessful.

[aubiefifty 16,791]

Just now, aujeff11 said:

Hey shiny hook, I’m a fish, and I find your horrible attempt of luring me in arrogantly unsuccessful.

i am not luring anyone into anything but thanks for trying. football and war are two totally different things. one is a game. the other will take your life or maim your life. the truth is some on here use any chance to demonize players and coaches and i will exercise my right to take up for coaches and players anytime i see fit. how can we turn this into a positive? oh i have a great idea. instead of comparing football players to troops lets try instead to do something useful like talking to our senators and congressmen about our troops not getting paid during gov shutdowns. oh..........you can call me hook for short...........

[abw0004 10,113]

27 minutes ago, bigbird said:

And if presented with the same decision, millionaire or play one last game, I'm pretty confident which the majority, if being honest, would take.

You can also be a millionaire (first round pick) and play one last game though.  It doesn't have to be one or the other.  I just can see this escalating, to where the second a player thinks they will be a first rounder, they sit out the rest of the season, or even a whole season like many were advising Fournette to do for the 2016 season.  That could spell disaster for a team that was not prepared for players/starters to start dropping like flies the second they feel like they have done enough.  I believe ground rules need to be laid out for everyone's benefit.  Same goes for coaches too.  I don't think coaches should be able to bail on a team before the season is over, or go into talks/interviews before the season is over.  It goes both ways in my eyes.

[aujeff11 6,243]

Just now, aubiefifty said:

i am not luring anyone into anything but thanks for trying. football and war are two totally different things. one is a game. the other will take your life or maim your life. the truth is some on here use any chance to demonize players and coaches and i will exercise my right to take up for coaches and players anytime i see fit. how can we turn this into a positive? oh i have a great idea. instead of comparing football players to troops lets try instead to do something useful like talking to our senators and congressmen about our troops not getting paid during gov shutdowns. oh..........you can call me hook for short...........

Hook it is! Dilly dilly!!

[aubiefifty 16,791]

you know i understand why some people are upset even if i do not agree with it. hell lets go to a playoff like different divisions do and every game would count. just an idea..........

[DAG 33,982]

9 minutes ago, abw0004 said:

You can also be a millionaire (first round pick) and play one last game though.  It doesn't have to be one or the other.  I just can see this escalating, to where the second a player thinks they will be a first rounder, they sit out the rest of the season, or even a whole season like many were advising Fournette to do for the 2016 season.  That could spell disaster for a team that was not prepared for players/starters to start dropping like flies the second they feel like they have done enough.  I believe ground rules need to be laid out for everyone's benefit.  Same goes for coaches too.  I don't think coaches should be able to bail on a team before the season is over, or go into talks before the season is over.  It goes both ways in my eyes.

Huh? If he played one last game and got hurt in a substantial way that would absolutely decrease his investment. Like god forbid, CD sustained a spinal or neck injury ( I am going to use an outlandish hypothetical since everyone else is doing it), would you reimburse him for the potential losses? I imagine most people would say , he got a chance to play for AU and a free education , which I also find laughable based on how much money these young adults bring in for the university and their coaches. CGM annual pay could cover all of these kids scholarships and then some. Which is why I believe CGM completely understood CD position and probably tried to protect him.

[lionheartkc 6,150]

5 minutes ago, abw0004 said:

I just can see this escalating, to where the second a player thinks they will be a first rounder, they sit out the rest of the season, or even a whole season like many were advising Fournette to do for the 2016 season.  That could spell disaster for a team that was not prepared for players/starters to start dropping like flies the second they feel like they have done enough.

Just think how much this would benefit us with all of our practice losing key players at the beginning of the season

[abw0004 10,113]

1 minute ago, DAG said:

Huh? If he played one last game and got hurt in a substantial way that would absolutely decrease his investment. Like god forbid, CD sustained a spinal or neck injury ( I am going to use an outlandish hypothetical since everyone else is doing it), would you reimburse him for the potential losses? I imagine most people would say , he got a chance to play for AU and get a free education , which I also find laughable based on how much money these people young adults bring in for the university and their coaches. CGM annual pay could cover all of these kids scholarships and then some.

He could get hurt in practice, training for the NFL draft, or walking to his car.  Look at Tom Brady, cutting his hand open in practice.  Things happen.  And if players know they are 1st rounders, why not sit out more games than the bowl game?  You are more likely to become injured during the season than the bowl games due to fatigue and nagging injuries where you can better rest up for the bowl game.  All I am saying is we need ground rules, or players are going to start taking it further and further.  And like I said, same for coaches too.

[aubiefifty 16,791]

here is something to chew on since we have heard it all so to speak. what if a kid did not want to catch grief for sitting out so he goes in and plays NOT to get hurt? kj admitted his refusal to come out of games earlier hurt the team more than once. now i am not jumping kj and i love watching him play. that being said those were his words and not mine.people can mail in games and hurt us as bad or maybe worse if there is another talented kid behind him wanting to play. shrugs........just a thought. this one might not hold water but it is a thought.

[steeleagle 2,945]

55 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Why do y'all keep making up hypotheticals that are nothing like this situation? Why not? It could happen. And he WAS our best cover DB, and with what UCF did to us, his presence was not hurting our D? of course it hurt.

What does a QB sitting out have to do with a CB sitting out? They are key players to your team. WHen you have a lock down corner, who is covering your best WR, ofc it makes a difference. Same goes with a QB.

How on earth does being a team player for 3 years make one self-interested decision worse?  Would it be better if Davis was a me-first guy all this time? Not sure where you are coming from here. I am simply saying, I think he should have played. Plain and simple.

If he's only involved in 10-12 plays, then why should anyone care any more about him not being in the game than he should about risking his future? I can say the same on the other side. Why not play, if you're only involved in 10-12 plays. More than likely your not going to be thrown to anyway, bc you are the best DB there.

Folks just trying to find reasons to be mad. At an Auburn guy. "Fans". "Family". Whatever. Who said I was mad? Can you read mad in my words? Hope my wife doesn't catch on then. lol. Look. There is a split here. No problem. Maybe this is old school and being responsible regardless of his future concerns is what i feel he should have done. 

You make it so easy to respond. lol.