OT Notre Dame suspends two players for the Pinstripe Bowl

Submitted by ghost on

Notre Dame has suspended RB George Atkinson and CB Jalen Brown for violations of team rules.  Atkinson tweeted that he was suspended for texting family and friends during a team meal as he has done all season.

Hard to believe a coach would suspend players for that.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/eye-on-college-football/243891…

MGoBoard
Football

814 East U

December 28th, 2013 at 3:44 PM ^

Dude can't wait an hour or two to text? Are bar fights covered during recruiting? So a guy shouldn't get suspended for a bar fight if it's not in the team handbook or because the coach didn't bring it up to mom during the in home visit? Guys know the gist of how teams run and operate or soon find out when they get on campus.

Joined: 10/24/2012

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bacon

December 28th, 2013 at 11:38 AM ^

I'm sure that now Kelly is more upset about the tweet than the texting. Edit: I wonder if Atkinson is setting up to sue Brian Kelly for slander...

Joined: 01/04/2009

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IPFW_Wolverines

December 28th, 2013 at 11:37 AM ^

Why enforce rules at this particular dinner after not doing so all season? I have no problem with rules of this type being enforced if it is consistent. It makes me wonder if there is not more to the story. For instance, was it the texting that got him suspended or was he told to stop and his reaction what got him suspended?

Need more information.

Joined: 10/03/2010

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Section 1

December 28th, 2013 at 11:39 AM ^

 Atkinson tweeted that he was suspended for texting family and friends during a team meal as he has done all season.

LOL.  Tweeting about getting suspended for texting during a team meal.  Somebody needs to make sure that this didn't come from The Onion.

Joined: 06/29/2009

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UMgradMSUdad

December 28th, 2013 at 11:40 AM ^

I see two likely scenarios: either Kelly was trying to make an example (and using players that won't really be missed in the bowl game), or there's a bit more to it than just a one-time texting violation.

 

Joined: 07/02/2011

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UMgradMSUdad

December 28th, 2013 at 12:23 PM ^

And early this morning on some syndicated sports radio I heard some blowhard talking about how the Big Ten was going to be 0-3 in bowl games after ND defeats Rutgers.  He had a point about how bad Rutgers has been this year and how they don't really deserve to be in a bowl game, but except to have some axe to grind against the league, it's quite the stretch to  start counting losses that haven't even occurred yet by teams that are not even in the B1G yet against the league.

Joined: 07/02/2011

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M-Dog

December 28th, 2013 at 12:17 PM ^

WTF is up with ND's uni pants color not even close to matching the helmet color?  

Amateurish.  My Jr. High School football team that borrowed old unis from 2 different high schools looked better.
 
(I'm treating this thread as the Pinstripe Bowl thread.  Not worth making two threads in a row for Notre Dame.)
 

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543Church

December 28th, 2013 at 12:14 PM ^

Kids these days.  Seems anybody under the age of 30 can't keep their phone out of their hands longer than 5 minutes.    He has to admit he has a problem.

 

Joined: 03/09/2012

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Mmmm Hmmm

December 28th, 2013 at 12:57 PM ^

Professionals may have "important" messages coming in all day but generally not in proportion to the amount of time they stay on their phones. Including at meetings or events where somebody is speaking.
I can see Kelly taking the phone away (Atkinson might fumble it when tapped on the shoulder anyway) but a suspension is quite harsh.

Joined: 09/12/2010

MGoPoints: 5144

cbs650

December 28th, 2013 at 1:39 PM ^

I agree. Are we to believe that these coaches arent attached to their phones and on them at team dinners or even meetings? I understand all the rules are rules people but lets see how many of yall would like it if you got a ticket every time u went 56 in a 55 mph zone. That is what this amounts to for me

Joined: 02/07/2011

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Spunky

December 28th, 2013 at 1:38 PM ^

I know Bacon is a friend of the blog, but the man needs to be stopped. Any teacher who destroys ringing smartphones in the classroom is a cold, angry man (or woman). An angry man! He could just confiscate the phones until the end of the semester. Instead, it's hammer time. Ridiculous! I wonder if ProfitGoBlue is willing take on a small civil case seeking the value of an iPhone. 

Plus, those football tell-all books just rub me the wrong way. [Mumbles about Snoop Lion picking up recruits from LAX]

 

 

Joined: 09/12/2012

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LSAClassOf2000

December 28th, 2013 at 1:15 PM ^

The tweet was deleted, of course, but I have heard that Kelly has a rather stringent policy about releasing team news through outlets like Twitter and Facebook and the like. If that is indeed the case, then if I were Atkinson, I might worry about following up a violation of team rules with another potential violation of team rules as well. 

Joined: 01/07/2011

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BeatOSU52

December 28th, 2013 at 1:21 PM ^

I'm guessing there's more to the story, but kudos to Kelly for this decision.  While everyone is focused by if a young athlete tweets something deemed as inappropriate, there should also be punishment if someone is acting like a jackass with their smart phones.  Smart phones are nice devices, but it's a bit of sad society we live in these days where it's acceptable for people to have their heads buried in their smart phones all the time instead of interacting with the people around you.

 

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