Newspapers / University of North Carolina … / April 13, 2006, edition 1 / Page 8
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Page 8 'I'hc Blue Banner — Sening the University of North Carolina at Asheville since 1982 Favre’s indecision not helping Green Bay’s offseason or future Another week has gone by, and another decision to make no deci sion regarding his football future with the Green Bay Packers has been made by Brett Favre. Well, at least he still wants to play golf. Reporters descended on the future Hall of Fame quarterback’s charity golf tournament like vul tures on a fresh carcass, only to be shooed away when the figurative corpse that is Favre’s future, stood up and proclaimed that no, he still isn’t sure if he wants to call it quits yet. Favre seems more and more con cerned about what the team has done to improve itself, since the poor guy doesn’t want to stick out another dismal 4-12 season. “I’d like to say I think we are better, but I don’t know if we are,” said Favre on Saturday. Never mind the return of the sec ond all-time passing yards leader, what can the team do for him? His once logical indecision has gone from annoying to downright child ish. And coming from one of the biggest Favre fans alive, this is not easy to say. Yes, Favre has been the heart and soul of Green Bay for his entire 1,‘i-ycar career, but he owes them, at the very least, a decision. And his career-high 29-interception season isn’t exactly helping his own cause. Forget who they’re acquiring, what about Favre? His iron will and cannon arm have been his mainstay for over a dozen years, but is that slipping? And the Packers? With their franchise player stonewalling, the free-agency fiesta passing them by and draft day approaching. Green Ray head coach Mike Mcf’arthy declined to comment through a spokesperson. A spokesperson? Oh, wow. Publicly grabbing your quarter back by the face and shaking him lor an answer at his own golf event might be out of the ques tion, but that’s not far from what this writer would do in this sort of situation. Let that be a lesson to people; just because you can beat Madden 200,5 doesn’t mean you’re ready to coach in the NFL. Favre has not only backed him self into a corner, he’s unknow ingly dragged Green Bay into it with him. Whatever Favre decides, the naysayers will won der why he couldn’t have said that J>aul Petrequin two months ago. There are not going to be any winners when this is all over, just a quarterback pres sured into a decision he didn’t want to make and a franchise even more crippled than a four-win season. Brett Favre is a Hall of Fame quarterback, and icon to the NFL and Green Bay, as well as a model citizen. And nothing is more frus trating to a sports fan then seeing such a player retire on a sour note. Favre was the best for a long time, and a pat on the back to anyone who can find the key word in this sentence. It’s a difficult situation from any angle. Return and throw 25 picks before hanging up the cleats, or finally decide to retire and leave a decrepit franchise in an even big ger mess? At least with Favre, everyone can agree it’s not about the money, and how often can you say that about a superstar athlete? The off-field issues concerning family that may take precedence over football at the moment, which could be hindering Favre’s decision. But what he and others may fail to realize is that as long as his tenure in Green Bay has been, those crazy cheese-heads at Lambeau Field are his family too. It’s Favre’s call, he’s earned that much, but the Packers deserve an answer. No one will think less of him should he choose to retire, he’s given fans 15 years of high lights and memories. Or coming back to a lowly team and giving it one last hurrah might be a more noble gesture than anyone could ask. Regardless of what he decides, whenever he makes his decision, number four will always be that magical iron man from Podunk, Mississippi playing football in Podunk, Wisconsin. And if that’s good enough for him, that should be good enough for anyone. Blue Banner Staff Spring 2006 I Vacy I lomc News Editor .Maribeth KLser Editor-in-Chief Flrin Curtis Sports Editor .Vnne Phillips Features/ Layout Editor Brian Daris Photo Editor Ixmi Bcnficld Advertising Paul Petrequin Entertainment Editor Sarah Schmidt Copy Editor Rachel Wright Copy Editor .\llie 1 laake Assistant Editor Jason Lilly Assistant Editor Rebecca 'Faylor Assistant Editor Sarah F'antle Assistant Editor Steve Janics.son Online Editor Justin Molt Circuiation .Vntlrcs .Martin Business Manager Lisa\'. Gillespie Assistant Editor .\dam I lillbcrry Circuiation .\nna Ixe Copy Editor (828) Z-S1-6586 CK) 1256 UN’C-\-KH019 One Universin I Icights Ashcxillc. N(: 28804 Michael Gouge Faculty Adviser banner@unca.edu The Blue Banner Policies The Banner is the University of North Carolina at Asheville’s student newspaper. We publish each Thursday, except during summer sessions, finals week and holiday breaks. Our office is located in Karpen Hall 017. The Banner welcomes letters to the editor and articles and considers them on the basis of interest, space and timeliness. Letters should be e- mailed to banner@unca.edu a^d limited to 300 words. Editorials are lim ited to one page in length. l,etters should be signed with the writer’s name, followed by the year in school, major or other relationship to UNCA. Include a telephone number to aid in verification. All articles submitted are subject to edit ing. Athletes discouraged from missing classes To an onlooker, it might appear that UNCA’s athletic department consists primarily of frisbee and hackey-sack teams who practice leisurely in-between (or during) classes when the weather is affa ble. Regardless of how one feels about it, the fact of the matter is that UNCA is essentially the antithesis of the University of Notre Dame as far as its attitude toward sports; students are more likely to spend a Friday night at the drum circle downtown or the Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company than at a game. 6i Laura Eshelman 6i If professors can comprehend an SGA officer’s need to miss class to represent UNCA, so they should with athletes, who still represent the school albeit in a different department. An SGA officer who feels ostra cized and devalued will subse quently feel less inclined and motivated to perform his or her duty to UNCA; so it is with ath letes. Though piquing widespread stu dent interest in UNCA athletics may or may not be worth the chal lenge, it remains crucial that stu dent athletes have every opportu nity to improve their respective teams’ potential and represent UNCA as shiningly as possible. Those who catch a glimpse of teams at work on practice fields behind Governor’s Village or fol low the daily schedule of a given student athlete probably count their blessings that they only have courses and maybe a part-time job to juggle. One can occasionally skip class or concoct an excuse to miss work without heavy consequences; it isn’t so easy for athletes who have weekly competitions and tourna ments. The only thing that makes an inflexible schedule more difficult to manage is inflexible professors and instructors. The UNCA athletic department hands out forms for student ath letes to be signed by teachers, out lining practice and game times so the teachers know beforehand whether a student will miss a test or a lecture and to ensure that the student can make it up. However, one former UNCA athlete stated that his coach dis couraged team members from let ting on that they were athletes. Another UNCA athlete who spends 25 hours a week on schoolwork and another 18 to 20 hours on athletics said she feels discrimination from teach ers who won’t agree to make allowances for missed atten dance on certain nights. because UNCA instructors have a reputation for being less lenient with athletes than with the average class-cutter. This included not donning team uniforms or para- phemaha. Another UNCA athlete who spends 25 hours a week on school- work and another 18 to 20 hours on athletics said she feels discrim ination from teachers who won’t agree to make allowances for missed attendance on certain nights. Like many student athletes, she attends UNCA on an athletic scholarship, and the irony of los ing that scholarship because of professors’ refusals to help her complete coursework and still remain on the team would be shameful— not on the part of the student, but of the UNCA faculty and staff. This is not to downplay the importance of class attendance, as much as students grumble about it; when one signs up for a course. Dmitri Mevedev - Staff Photographer and Graphic Artist With weather like this there are no excuses There are more people over weight in our country than ever before, and an increasing num ber of new programs are helping people get in shape and stay active. By encouraging outdoor activ ities, instead of just focusing on weight-loss, modern attempts at achieving a healthy society attack the root of the problem: Americans are spending too much time in front of the TV. AUie Haake aJL (Hi W^hile the physical effects of sitting around and doing nothing all day are apparent, the mental consequences of our television habits can be even more critical. If truly desired, life can be filled with just as much drama as the lives of the characters on Sex and the City. It just takes a few reckless shopping trips, tossing out some of your moral beliefs and a ravenous appetite for mischief. The average person in the United States spends more than four hours watching television every day, according to Nielsen Media Research. That means we spend two months a year immo bilized in front of a lifeless box. While the physical effects of sitting around and doing nothing all day are apparent, the mental consequences of our television habits can be even more critical. Humans are naturally social creatures, and by spending most of our free time indoors we are increasing the chances of feeling apathetic, unmotivated and gen erally unhappy. We have chosen to reduce our evenings to watching other peo ple, often with far lower intelli gence levels, live their lives while ours pass us by. Nobody’s perfect. I watch cer tain shows every week, but sometimes I realize that I am subjecting my mind to nothing more than various dimensions of a glass screen. While the amount of time col lege students spend watching TV is probably less than the average American, a more bal anced lifestyle would have many benefits, like reduced stress, improved health and more social interaction. The benefits of practicing lay ups in the backyard or having lunch with friends at the park instead of watching a game on TV or a daily soap opera are numerous. So go ahead. Enjoy the sunshine. It could be the cure to all of your problems. Be warned, however, that it takes more physical effort to entertain yourself than it does to sit back and watch the lives of your favorite fictional charac ters. While the withdrawal symptoms of TV addiction encroach, remember: If truly desired, life can be filled with just as much drama as the lives of the characters on “Sex and the City.” It just takes a few reckless shopping trips, tossing out some of your moral beliefs and a ravenous appetilf for mischief. Or, you could just see what happens to life when you reduce the amount of time spent on the couch. After deciding that television is really not worth all of time, finding a replacement does not always come easily. Think back to your childhood The activities that were the ffiosj pleasing as a kid are just as, u not more, enjoyable and beneh' cial as an adult. Take pictures in the botanical gardens, rollerblade around yoni neighborhood, or go down the scariest rollercoaster Carowinds. , Last weekend, a group j* friends organized a friendly game of kick-ball. While they tried to stick to the rules, it std remained a carefree comped' tion. , They used a soccer ball instea of a rubber one, kept score wi a stick in the sand, and took ^ extra-long break after the six inning to grill hamburgers. By enjoying the warm wea er, hanging out with friends an getting exercise all at one proves there is always soffC^ thing better to do than watchiDc television. L 13, 20061 kpt attendance is part of the deal Teachers have a right to feel indi» nant when a student repeatedM fails to show up and still expect spectacular results. Nevertheless there should be two exceptions' health and other school oblipx tions. “ If professors can comprehend an SGA officer’s need to miss class to represent UNCA, so they should with athletes, who still represent the school albeit in a different department. An SGA officer who feels ostracized and devalued will subsequently feel less inchned and motivated to perform his or her duty to UNCA; so it is with; letes. The aforementioned smdent ath lete quit the team he belonged to because he said the effort was not worth the time practices took, as well as the lack of encouragement He currently hopes to find that at j another university. Many athletes already express a i sense of alienation from the school because sports are so low on the hst of priorities. Apathy toward athletics is one thing- no one can make a student care about a base ball game- but it doesn’t take as much to support a student athlete’s aspirations. If playing on a team was second ary to education, it’s unlikely we would have any athletes at all, and teachers should consider that when | looking over a student athletes’ I academic records, rather than the number of class sessions missed. am wit lexha lexte )6,0 lA/y
University of North Carolina at Asheville Student Newspaper
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April 13, 2006, edition 1
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