I’ve always said there is a right way to do things and a wrong way to do things.
I’ve seen two extreme examples of both in the last couple of weeks.
This past week, former NFL wide receiver Terrell Owens announced that he would not be attending his induction into the NFL Hall of Fame.
When I first heard this, I couldn’t believe it. My initial thought was it must be something incredibly important for Owens not to attend his induction to the Hall of Fame.
But it didn’t take long to realized that this was Owens being who he has always been and that’s an attention-seeking prima donna. Owens may be the worst example of a professional athlete that I have ever seen. As a player, he was very talented and one of the league’s best. But by all accounts, he was a cancer in the locker room.
In my mind, his defining moment was when he stood in the middle of the Dallas Cowboy Star as a San Francisco 49er. Former Alabama standout George Teague didn’t stand for it and clocked Owens. Teague immediately became one of my favorite players. He received a standing ovation from the Dallas crowd after being ejected from the game. Owens can be seen arguing with teammates and coaches on the sideline after the incident.
So it should come as no surprise to us that Owens would pull a stunt like this. Induction into the NFL Hall of Fame should be the pinnacle of any football player’s career. This means that you were one of the best at the highest level of your sport. It’s also a chance to thank all of the players and coaches who helped you get to that point.
And then there is a right way to do things.
A few weeks ago, I had the honor of attending The Meridian Star’s Premier Preps year-end banquet.
One of the players being honored was Newton County’s Joel Hill, who was selected as the event’s player of the year in boys’ soccer. The problem was that on the night of the banquet, Hill was on a senior trip to the beach. But Hill’s dad, former East Central softball coach Scott Hill, told his son that he was coming to the event. Hill drove down to pick up his son and brought him to the event.
“I told him that he has his entire life to go to the bench but there will never be another night like this,” Hill told me. I agreed and wished that more parents were like the Hills.
Then there was West Lauderdale’s Jerry Boatner, who had already announced his retirement. Boatner was selected as the baseball coach of the year at the event. But as it happened, he was planning on leaving town that day with a U-Haul in tow headed to Atlanta.
It would have been easy for Boatner to blow off the event and get an early start for Atlanta.
“I’ve always believed that if someone is going to take the time to honor you, you should make time to be there. It’s just the right thing to do,” Boatner told me.
And sure enough, Boatner showed up that night with his U-Haul in tow and stayed until the end.
I know there are plenty of people in Newton County that don’t care for Boatner and his antics at West Lauderdale, but there’s no denying that the coach did things the right way.
The older I get, the more I appreciate things done the right way. That’s why I tip my hat to Coach Boatner and the Hills.
And that’s why punks like Terrell Owens boil my blood and make me want to puke.
Robbie Robertson is sports editor for The Newton County Appeal. You can email him at rrobertson12811@yahoo.com.
