NCAA should have bigger fish to fry

The University of West Georgia in Carrollton has, after a ten-month study, changed the school mascot from the Braves to the Wolves. I like the idea of a wolf as a mascot. Wolves are large, powerful, dangerous, aggressive, carnivorous creatures that hunt in packs and seem to fear very little. That’s the kind of mascot you want for the sports teams—one that conveys power, danger, and strength. It’s the reason the mascot was changed that I take issue with.

The reason? “Presidents and chancellors on the NCAA Executive Committee approved a series of recommendations in the spirit of the Association’s core principles on diversity and inclusion that would limit the use of Native American mascots, nicknames and imagery at future NCAA championships.”

A series of recommendations? Hardly. In the same statement released by the University of Louisiana at Monroe the extortion is announced: “Under the new guidelines, if the identified schools do not make changes by February 1, 2006, they will not be able to host future NCAA championships competition, unless they already have been selected as a predetermined site. In those cases, schools still would have to take reasonable steps to cover up the references to Native Americans before the competition begins. For championships in general, the new policy means that institutions displaying or promoting hostile or abusive references on their mascots, cheerleaders, dance teams and band uniforms or paraphernalia would be prohibited from wearing the material during competition. Related merchandise also could not be sold at the championship site.”

Wouldn’t you think that the NCAA would do better by trying to raise the graduation rates of college athletes? Or at least try to deal with all the student athletes that seem to be getting arrested for some pretty major felonies these days? But, no, the bully boys at the NCAA announce that some people might be offended by certain mascots and if the schools don’t cave in they will be sorry. Well, my grandmother, so I’m told, was one-half Cherokee and I, for one, am not offended one bit.

I played football in junior high school for the Ross N. Robinson Redskins. Our cross-town rivals were the John Sevier Warriors. The two groups went to the same high school where, together, we played for the Kingsport Dobyns-Bennett Indians. How politically incorrect is that! I went to East Tennessee State University where the mascot was the Buccaneers, but I guess pirates have no lobbying power these days because you can still have a pirate as a mascot.

I guess it will work its way down into the high school ranks eventually. I suppose the McIntosh High School Chiefs (the school was named after an Indian, oops, Native American, by the way — Chief McIntosh) and the East Coweta High School Indians will have to change their names too. Maybe the McIntosh Cobras and the East Coweta Sharks. Until the folks from PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) get involved. I’m sure they’ll tell us that animals are demeaned by using them as mascots and, if they could talk, they’d say so and file a class action suit.

Besides, wolves, snakes, and shark are all part of the ecosystem and have as much a place as we do. No, actually, they have more of a place on the earth that we do because you can’t destroy sea turtle eggs because you will be fined and jailed but you can destroy a human life in the womb and that seems to be just fine. So, sooner or later, animals, birds, and sea creatures will undoubtedly incur the NCAA’s wrath.

So, I suppose other mascots will have to be selected. One day soon we may see the McIntosh High School Cauliflowers play the East Coweta Rutabagas in the State Football Playoffs. At least until the people from the Vegetarian Liberation Front start to get involved.