How is the State of the Student-Athlete Now ?

How did a week fan shoving, school expulsions, and Olympic glory lead to a reflection on the state of student-athletes?  Good question.

A week ago, Parker Jackson-Cartwright was a star basketball player on one of the top high school basketball teams in the state of California.  Jackson-Cartwright has been having a stellar season at Loyola High School in the Los Angeles area, leading the Cubs to a 24-2 record.  On Indihoops.com, Loyola is ranked #2 in the state of California and #14 in the entire country.  Jackson-Cartwright, a University Arizona commit, has been a big part of the success.  This week, however, the Wildcat to be was caught cheating in school and was dismissed from Loyola High School and subsequently the Cubs’ basketball team, two weeks before the playoffs begin.  Not only will Jackson-Cartwright miss the remainder of this season, but because he is already committed to an institution for next year, it is quite possible that he doesn’t play a meaningful basketball game until November of next year.

While what Jackson-Cartwright did was wrong and the actions taken by the school justified, the situation does offer a time of reflection of the need for school and sports to be tied together.

The Olympic coverage this week has been outstanding.  While rooting for Sean White to stick his last run and take gold in the half pike, it was tough to see him land just off the podium.  What caught my attention though was not the gold medal run, but the performance of the 15 year old Japanese phenom who took home the Bronze.  Wait a second, 15 years old, in Sochi, from Japan, in February, how is he doing in school?

The Olympic Games are littered with high school aged athletes competing at the highest level of their sport.  Many have forgone the traditional educational approach to work independently on their studies, so that they can have flexibility in their training schedule.   While, in many cases, the value of an education is still important to them, their prowess in the classroom has nothing to do the ability to play sports. The majority of athletes work under these pretenses.  It is only the traditional team sports that still seemed to be directly linked to the schools they represent.  In fact, in the case of the U.S. team, the only members of the Olympic team that would have sports participation linked to academic success are those on the men’s and women’s hockey teams.

Parker Jackson-Cartwright is in no way, shape, or form a victim.  He made a mistake and he is being punished for his wrongdoings.  He is a learning a hard lesson, one he will probably never forget.   The connection of the terms “student, athlete” have been forever linked in this realm of traditional team sports, so it begs the question as to where the line is drawn.

In one of the most debated and discussed events of the week on a national scale, Marcus Smart, the star guard for the Oklahoma State Cowboys shoved a Texas Tech fan during a game in Lubbock, Texas.  Smart was fouled on a play and fell out of bounds, within ear shot of this fan.  The fan made a few lewd comments and Smart shoved him in frustration.  Smart clearly made an error in judgment in how he handled the situation, but in this instance there is blame on two ends.  Without getting into the debate of who was right or wrong on in this instance, Smart was punished in the manner of a three game suspension (which he is currently serving).

Marcus Smart is one of the best “student-athletes” in the country.  His error took place on the court and therefore his punishment is being handled on the floor.   To my knowledge, Smart has not been asked to leave his morning Sociology class because of what happened at Texas Tech.   It is common sense that a student would not be punished for something that happened in athletics.  Why is it not common sense the other way around?

Parker Jackson-Cartwright was dismissed from a school institution and therefore has no place to play the remainder of his senior season.  But there are many other kids on high school campuses across the country that are withheld from sport competition for reasons that have nothing to do with the sport itself.   Low academic performance, discipline reasons, tardiness or truancy, and even transfer rules can keep a young boy or girl away from their sport.  These issues (while important) have nothing to do with the sport itself, nor the athletes’ participation in it.

Education is important and should play a vital role in the realm of a teenagers’ life.  But if there is anything to be learned from the Winter Olympic competitors, motor cross participants, marathoners, rock climbers, skateboarders, bike riders, and all other sports not sanctioned by state sport governing bodies it’s that young people can receive an education and be able to participate in sport without one dictating the other.   They are students and athletes without being student-athletes.