Shame on Urban Meyer and Florida

And while you're at it, how about shame on the Southeast Conference and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the two organizations that are supposed to be charged with administration of the University of Florida athletic programs?

I am disappointed but not surprised that Urban Meyer, when deciding his own penalty, would be lenient. But is is clear that an act ao heinous and egregiousas that of Mr. Spike's is deserving of as harsh a penalty as college football can supply.

But Bob, he won 2 national titles in the last 3 years  ... yet, Wanny will win at least 9 games again this year, graduate almost all, if not all of his seniors (13 of 14 last year) and will be totally ridiculed for his next loss.

With Roger Goodell unwilling to step in with the Raiders situation, where it's fairly obvious Tom Cable broke the jaw of his assistant coach, are you really that shocked that in major college football that Urban Meyer didn't suspend Spikes for that cheap shot?

Mike Silve has his hands full enough just with the officiating conspiracies that are going around the SEC (and indeed, that call in the Arkansas-Florida game was borderline criminal) to be worrying about how his coaches are dealing out discipline.

Now, if this was, say, Vanderbilt, I have no doubt he would have been suspended the rest of the season.  But this is FLORIDA.  A money making machine for the university.  For the SEC.  Florida being a national power is good for college football as a whole.  So the NCAA will turn and look away.  

The policy should be simple:  If you attack another player with the intent to injure (I.e. punching, eye gouging, etc) then you should be suspended for the remainder of the season, including bowls, period.

That takes ridiculous punishments like 30 minutes out of the equation, because it's obvious the head coaches can't handle it.

i agree completely.  Michael Wilbon said tonight on PTI that that sort of thing has gone on forever in football during pile-ups, and anyone who thinks otherwise is naive.  what??!!  well then count me as naive, because i HIGHLY doubt many players have resorted to such slimy tactics before during a football game.  and this is still college football, and players are still supposed to be learning about how to be decent people, not just players.  also, Meyer's demeanor in his press conference was less than convincing.  i honestly believe he thinks Spikes' behavior wasn't all that bad.

as an aside, one of the posters wrote that Goodell is failing to step in, when "it's fairly obvious Tom Cable broke the jaw of his assistant coach."  i need to say that this is insane by people...the POLICE have no evidence to charge Cable with assault...this means THE COACH with the JAW says "he didn't hit me" or "it was an accident".   got it?  if the coach was charging that Cable hit him intentionally, the police would have charged Cable.  so unless you think the injured coach is a fragile, beaten wife, i'd stop accusing the man of assault, because without a victim, there is no assault.

Right on Bob, with one exception here.

Yes, shame on Meyer and shame on college football for not taking hold of a bad situation.  However............it's not college football that Meyer is involved in.  It's PRO football being played under the guise of what used to be college football.

That's what is wrong with today's college football.

ChancellorPink,

I'd consider using a different comparison than the "fragile, beaten wife" considering the fact that Outside the Lines just ran a special last Sunday about Cable's history of domestic abuse.  I believe they had 2 ex-wives and a former girlfriend that reported Cable being physically violent.

As for Florida, this does not surprise me at all.  Florida is the media golden boy, and short of someone getting their arm snapped by a Gator, I doubt the SEC and NCAA would do anything that might hinder Florida's chances at winning the title again this year.

yes.  i know.  it was one ex and one GF who, after God knows how many years,  suddenly came out with allegations of abuse.  that's precisely why i used that analogy.

go ahead and hang 'em high with a vigilante posse's rope, if that's your thing, PantherFan85.  but i prefer criminal charges be filed before i even entertain the possibility that a celebrity committed any violent crime.

I've considered Meyer a jerk since the Fiesta Bowl against Pitt and he was calling reverses and hook-and-ladder plays up by four touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

I'm not advocating a vigilante posse.  I'm simply thinking a bit more tact might be wise.

But if assuming these women are lying is your thing, then go right ahead.

I'm not sure it should be up to a coach to impose discipline for an onfield incident.  Should Mike Tomlin bench a Steeler for making a helmet to helmet hit?  The $EC should have primary jurisdiction in this case.  Meyer should only add to any penalty imposed from above.

tact is a matter of taste, Pantherfan85.  what i am suggesting is a matter of intelligence -- namely, don't believe everything you hear about a celebrity.

I made an exception when I read the subject of your piece. This act was more cruel, less a direct response to instigation, and more cowardly than the Oregon player's actions. I've already e-mailed the NCAA regarding the act embarrassing Spikes and Florida, but the punishment embarrassing the SEC and the NCAA. There is absolutely no way this should be the only punishment meted out. If Spikes is allowed to serve only the half game due to jurisdictional issues, the NCAA can, and should, ban him from playing in any bowl game.

Bob while I agree that the act is heinous when you take a look at the play on video I really would not expect any more of a punishment for Spikes or any other player that would commit the same act.

A couple of points to consider. First it was Florida vs. Georgia which is one of the most hated rivalries in College Football.  Second I'm sure Spikes was not unprovoked even though that does not condone eye gouging I'd like to hear both sides of the story.

Suspending a player for a half of football has been the type of suspension used in Div. 1 football for years for all types of player misconduct and on all stages whether it be a regular season game, a bowl game, etc.  I think it is unfair to just assume because it's Florida and not Vanderbilt or Kentucky that the punishment is somehow lenient and should be greater. Coach Meyer dealt with the issue, he addressed the expectations of the Florida program and made a decision that he believes fits the crime.

(The Oregon player was provoked and he was suspended for at least seven games. So please don't tell me this is a fitting punishment. It is a ridiculously weak punishment.  Your comment lacked only one thought: ``Go Gators!''  -- Bob Smizik)

If this was a case of a player getting money, the NCAA would penalize the entire program. This is only a case of a player losing his eyesight. The only people blind in this are Meyer and the NCAA

Right on Bob...and way to call out TbowTIme. ESPN guys - Millen, Young and Golic all say that his punishment is a joke.  Golic also said that the eye gouging doesn't happen all the time like people believe.  I believe Florida had more arrests per team than any other team in the country last year too. This is a big reason why.  This explains why so many good kids go there because there is no accountability.  I don't believe Pete Carroll would allow that to happen at USC

Wow. Just viewed the incident on YouTube. Good Lord, that's assault! The back was completely defenseless and there's Spikes digging his fingers into his eyes! Why was that animal not immediately thrown off the team and out of school? He should have been arrested but got 30 minutes? Who was the controlling legal authority there? The LAPD?

Unbelievable. If I'm Vanderbilt, I don't take the field if that guy's anywhere near it. No way I'd send my kids out there.

Here in Florida, the Spikes eye gouge video is the most popular feature on the local news.  The announcers caution that what the audience is about to see is "unsettling and perhaps  disturbing," which is a sure way to keep viewers watching.  

Beyond the hypocrisy of the one-half suspension (which will amount to about 15 plays, since it's highly unlikely Vanderbilt will do any more than to run three plays and out against Florida's defense), I wonder what, if  anything, Mr. Spikes will learn from this incident?  Supposedly he is in college to learn something other than how to improve his time in the 40-yard dash...oh wait, there I go, getting idealistic again.

And as for Coach Meyer:  He wouldn't know  how to  do the right thing if it hit him right between the eyes.

(Spoken like a true Highlander. --  Bob Smizik)

The punishment was a joke, we all seem to agree (except TBowTime who is obviously a UF fan).  What confuses me is why the police are not involved.  Forgive me for not remembering names, but this reminds me of the case where charges were brought against the NHL player for using his stick as a weapon, or the Raiders player for a dirty hit after a play that paralyzed someone.  An eye gouge has nothing to do with football, it's assault and was caught on tape.  I'd like to hear from the local DA.

I'm sure that if the eye gouge is Spikes' thing, he out to consider perfecting his move in professional wrestling. Meyer could be his ringside manager with the oxymoron of a name 'Suburban Urban'!!

Un-believable.  But these are the days of Michael Vick, and less and less is actually surprising me.

Eye Gouge Part II:

In the newspapers Coach Meyer defends Brandon Spikes, says that what he did really isn't him.  So who did it, his evil twin?  I guess in his case actions do not speak louder than words.  

So many people, including athletes do terrible stuff and then their coaches and buddies and sycophants say, Oh that's not really him.

On the positive side, if he doesn't make  the NFL, Spikes has a promising career as a villain in professional  wrestling.

Not minimizing this as obviously a stupid thing, but this kind of stuff goes on quite a bit.

I remain surprised no one has pointed out the punch to the groin by the OL from Michigan to the Illinois player who recovered the fumble (#93 I believe). it was clear what happened and you see 93 saying something to the ref after the turnover, as well as him doubled over on the sideline afterwards.

Probably didn't get much play cause both teams are pretty bad?

Having been a former player in high school and college (and a Highlander as well), stuff goes on.

The fact the camera caught it and now everyone is demanding action would probably force me to handle similar to Urban Meyer (if to only show that I can't have knee jerk reactions because the media told me so).

(The media reaction came AFTER Meyer levied his punishment. He was reacting to nothing but the eye gouging. -- Bob Smizik)

The Michael Vick comment was low, considering stuff like this that has happened throughout the lifetime of FB. Enough already.

Just saw the eye thing for the first time. My first reaction (honest to God) was remembering back in the day (the '80s) coaches telling us what kind of facemask to wear to prevent this kind of thing from happening. The '80s.

Blatant cause he was on the outside of the pile but really nothing new there. Definite penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct (was it called?). "Maybe" suspend for a game. Definitely get some attitude adjustments. Beyond that, pretty much a nonstory.

I agree a stiffer punishment was needed.  Maybe even Urban Meyer should be suspended for a game or two....I'm sure that would have all NCAA coaches a little more in touch with what is and is not acceptable on-field conduct.

I have to say though that I am not as outraged about the actual gouging incident as Bob and some of the others.  You have to realize that this stuff goes on more often that we would like to think.  I hate to think what gets grabbed or gouged at the bottom of a scrum trying to recover a loose football.  Eye-gouging is bad and can cause permanent damage.  So can chop-blocking (goodbye knees), blocking in the back (hello lifetime of back problems), tackling via facemasks, helmut-to-helmut hits and blind-side blocking (aka, the Hines Ward special).  Are these any less outrageous or less damaging?  

EJAB,  since you brought up Mke Vick, you may remember his younger brother, Marcus .... who in a bowl game, replay showied him blatantly kicking a Louisville player in a bowl game.  The officials missed it and he got away with it.  He was later cited for several off-the-field incidents, yet still made it for a year or two in the NFL with the Dolphins as a backup.  He was actually every bit of a bad guy as a brother, just less talent and bad PR.

BnGFan95, honestly, how can you believe that it is only "stupid" to intentionally gouge at someone's eyes after a play is dead, potentially blinding another human being for life?  just because players allegedly have done it before does not make it a "nonstory" or diminish the maliciousness of the act.  i'm sorry, there is no way to look at that video and be anything other than outraged, especially given Meyer's reponse and the fact that he represents the defending national Champions.  there is a responsibility to his position that goes beyond winning.  and i don't care how jaded many of us have become in this country, about sports and otherwise, i guarantee you this matter will not go away quietly, because most people still have a tremendous capacity for seeing the truth.

Doesn't surprise me...who are we to question this egomaniac, who would have you believe that he invented the game?  Afterall, what else would you expect from BeliCHEAT's bunk-buddy???

@BnGfan95-

Not nearly enough of the Michael Vick "stuff"...Vick is a deplorable excuse for a human, one that participated in & bankrolled a lucrative business, one that entailed the torture & inhumane killing of dogs.  Some say it's racial, others make the excuse that he made a mistake...WRONG, his was a way of life, not a mistake, played out over several years...HUGE difference!

Meyer showed his true colors when he never seriously considered sitting Tim Tebow for a game after a concussion.  That he wouldn't sit a player of Spikes abilities regardless of the foul committed just reinforces the point.  

The SEC and the NCAA are powerless to do much of anything in a situation like this because they have handed their power over to the pollsters, TV, and the alumni who also want to win at any cost.

Truth be known I can only think of about five college coaches that have the courage and the standing within their University communities to sit a player of that caliber.  None of them are named Urban Meyer

For you Bob.... Go Gators! Yes I am a huge Gator fan and a huge Urban Meyer fan. I wish he would have come to Pitt when the job was offered to him although I am a huge fan of the Stache.

That said I want to add to my earlier comments if I can. I consider myself to be an open minded guy and call them as I see them. My earlier comment used the word heinous to describe the act and that's what the act was. I thought he should have been ejected from the game at the time I watched it but apparrently the officials did not see it that way. The game was overly chippy from the kickoff. This game is always a nasty, penalty filled melee.

The game ends and subsequently Coach Meyer decides that a suspension is required. Over the course of time in college football the suspension for 1/2 of a game has been used for a myriad of reasons and under quite a few different conditions all of which can be debated whether the punsihment fit the crime. It HAS been used by many college coaches over time includig some of the best and at the most crucial times and in the most crucial games.  This is not the first physical altercation nor will it be the last where a coach uses it as a form of punishment.  

The Facts are none of us know what was said by the other player just as none of us know what was said to Legarret Blount by the Boise State player. And before you all jump on your holy horses I'm not condoneing physical actions as a retaliation for words.....sticks and stones....yeah I know. What I am saying is that in the heat of the moment when you are in a huge rivalry game such as Georgia Florida it is possible for your emotions to get the better of you and you lose it for an instance. Perhaps that's what happened who really knows except for Brandon Spikes and his team mates. Urban Meyer dealt with it the way he saw fit. The decision to suspend Legarret Blount was made by the AD at Oregon right after the instant he hit the Boise State player. Knee jerk reactions at the moment things go wrong are typically not the best result that people want. Hence the talk now about reinstating LB at Oregon.

We can all live in our glass houses and cast the first stone as to how reprehensible it was and scream bloody murder but in my opinion it is over and all parties have dealt with it and have moved on.  

Santo, all the actions you describe, face mask, clipping, etc, while no doubt dangerous, are related to playing the game. There was no football function related to Spikes' actions; he was only trying to harm the other player. Also, he was attacking a player in a helpless position after the play had ended. Despicable.

TBowTime wrote..."I consider myself to be an open minded guy and call them as I see them."

Not true, as evidenced by your prior post to the blog regarding the MLB post-season umpiring, where you chose to mention ONLY the calls that went against the Yanks, when any true "open minded guy who calls 'em like he sees 'em" is fully aware that the Yankees have been the beneficiary of the vast majority of the blown calls this post-season.  Front runner, maybe...open minded, def. NOT!

TBowTime-You seem to be suggesting that  it is somehow less outrageous to try to intentionally blind another player because the other guy might have said something and emotions are high in a rivalry game.  How is that any sort of excuse?    It's not like they were even face to face when he did it.  Instead, Spikes bent over and shoved his fingers in the helmet while the other guy was under the pile. People have emotional situations all the time (lost jobs, cheating girlfirends, etc).  It doesn't excuse violence, especially attacks that could leave someone with a permanent injury.  A half game suspension is fine if a player missed a meeting, not for assaulting another player.

Would you think a half game suspension was appropriate if the other player's career was ended by an eye injury?  And as for the Oregon incident, the reason the coach is contemplating reinstating Blount is because of the way Blount behaved in the days immediately folowing his suspension.  They claim that he made a heartfelt apology, reached out to the Boise St player, and continued to work hard despite having no reason to believe he'd ever play another game.  That is why a season long suspension might get shortened to seven games.  Had the coaching staff felt they got it all wrong from the start, there is little doubt that he would have been immediately reinstated, especially since he had to miss the USC game.

And as for the issue of clipping, face masks, late hits, helmet to helmet, etc, those are normally the result of overly aggressive play and poor technique.  It's not like you'll ever see a linebacker in good position to make a tackle intentionally grab a face mask.  It's always the guy lunging at the runner.

Eh, just another example of the slimy world of college football:

-- The body bag games so schools like Florida can run up big scores on lousy teams at home.

-- The thug "student" athletes like that creep Spikes

-- The creepy coaches who don't know a thing about sportsmanship so they can run up scores on a team when they're down.

-- The lying cowards like Petrino and Saban who will simply take off in the middle of the night for a bigger paycheck.  

Never mind the rigging officiating, biased BCS rankings and schools willing to ditch long-standing conferences and rivalries for a few extra bucks.  

TbowTime, regarding your trying to partially excuse Spikes' behavior due to the high emotions of the moment: using your logic we should give men guilty of domestic violence a stern talking to and take their remote for a week.

When considering this laughable non-punishment (Vandy! We're talking Vandy!) think about how much this will impress other student-athletes tempted to do similar acts.

GTurner absolutely not. To be clear I have never condoned what Spikes did and it certainly is not acceptable to intentionally try to gouge another players eyes. I found it interesting though how the Georgia player came out and said he did not think Spikes should be suspended at all. Any opinions on that?  

KM please don't try to compare sports and domestic violence. Let's stick with apples to apples if that's ok with you.

Tbow, your missing my point. Spikes' behavior had nothing to do with sports or playing football, it was a cowardly criminal assault that just so happened to take place at a football stadium, more similar to a man beating his wife than to a rusher hitting a QB a bit late. Would it be OK for me to beat my wife if I did it while we were playing golf?

In response to your question, the Georgia kid's response is what I would expect-if he says that Spikes needs to be punished he would look like a punk.

To Bob,

Understood. I thought he didn't know about the gouging until it was brought up later (by his wife or something?). My point was that the media wasn't happy about the half game suspension and that he'd dig his heels in and not increase just due to the scrutiny. That is what I would do. This thirst for blood that we have (as outsiders) is ridiculous. For all we know he (Spikes) could be dealing with "punishments"  for days or even weeks on end.

To chancellor,

Agree, saying it was stupid wasn't strong enough in describing what he did. I wouldn't call it "heinous" either. Obviously something set him off and he was going nuts for the moment. Calling for his scholarship and calling him an animal... That I'd call over the line". I'm not aware of Spikes other than he is a very good player, I believe an AA. Never heard of anything like this in the past. Haven't followed it closely enough to hear what he felt provoked that reaction (since if he is a 2nd-3rd yr player and prior acts haven't been to this level- again to my limited knowledge).

To BBD,

If we need to bring up MV at the instance of EVERY questionable thing that takes place not only in FB but in the world of sports.. Sorry, I think that will get real old, real quick.

Finally, is this really worse than the OL who dives over the pile (clearly after the play) intending to "chip" a defensive player- usually in the knees? I'd argue that was a clear intent to maim a player and it happens on a REGULAR basis. I honestly don't recall anyone ever saying said player was a "reprehensible" human being. Why do you think LT wears the eye shield? BECAUSE THIS ISN'T THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED. That is my only point. Doesn't make it right or wrong, just stating a fact.

In regard to the Tom Cable debate at the top of this blog...why not string him up?  If the "worldwide leader in sports" reported it, he's gotta be guilty!

Saturday, 1 a.m. Q: I may be in the minority, but I thought the intense booing of Brett Farve's return

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