Desmond blasts college athletes sense of entitlement at black coaches convention

Submitted by aaamichfan on

http://www.tampabay.com/sports/colleges/desmond-howard-blasts-college-athletes-sense-of-entitlement-at-black/1171997

Interesting comments from Desmond. My only problem is that he seems to be implying Denard has a sense of entitlement, when in reality it's the media who has pumped him up. IMO, one of the most humble guys we've had come through the program in a while.

Give it a quick read. Decently thought provoking for a boring Thursday night.

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Don

May 27th, 2011 at 11:35 AM ^

Desmond stepped on his dick, and then he put his foot in his mouth. He's a communications "professional" by now, and should have realized how his comments were going to appear to a national audience. If he hadn't used the most counter-intuitive example possible to illustrate his point, none of us would be discussing this.

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Wolverine96

May 27th, 2011 at 10:55 AM ^

I am not commenting until I see the entire speech.  It is very easy to take a couple of lines from a speech and completely twist the meaning. 

That said, I sincerely doubt that Desmond is throwing Denard under the bus or hanging him out to dry. 

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aawolverine

May 27th, 2011 at 11:45 AM ^

Desmond went out of his way to denigrate Denard's accomplishments, when it was completely unnecessary to do so to prove his point. He should either shut up, or learn to talk better. They should start handing out muzzles with the winged helmets. 

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gobluesasquatch

May 27th, 2011 at 1:44 PM ^

When I was in high school, and even English 125 at Michigan, we learned about this thing called context. We also learned how to read a statement for what it said, and not read into it with our emotions biasing the authors intent. Novel concept, I know.

How do athletes get a sense of entitlement - they get it from parents, teachers, coaches, and athletes fawning all over them. Just last week I was talking with a JUCO running back and he told me how he was earnign failing  grades, but his teachers would willingly give him passing grades to keep him eligible. It's one of the reasons hes playing JUCO ball right now and not D1 - grades. he's actually a well-thought out kid, but he was told he was necessary for his team to win in the playoffs, so everyone told him he was awesome. So instead of playing football in the Big 12, he's at a small JUCO far from home. 

Desmond made a very clear point about one of the most prolific players in Michigan history. We all acted as if Denard = success and that keeping him was more important than the team. Denard is a great, humble kid, but anyone who hears them being touted as a savior enough times might start believing it. And yes, what has Denard won? No big ten title, no win over Ohio State, no bowl win, so yes, while he put up amazing numbers, he still hasn't won anything. I love Denard Robinson as a person (from what I know) and a player, but Michigan's biggest issue wasn't Denard, but rather a defense that couldn't even stop an FCS school. 

If Denard had transfered, we'd have plugged in Devin Gardner, and moved on. Would it be the same, NO, but we'd have a team. Denard wanted to be a part of the team, did the right thing. Maybe it would have been nice for Desmond to add, "in the end, Denard is a special kid and moves beyond feeling entitled and wants to be part of something bigger than himself", but I don't fault what Desmond said. 

There is a big difference between using a great example of the potential for an athlete to develop a sense of entitlement, vs. throwing him under the bus and saying he already had that sense of entitlement. 

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