An All-Star ethics debate

[farmerjerome]

We are having a bit of debate up here, and I'm hoping you guys can shed some light.
PS., some parts of this story made national headlines because it involved a former pro athlete, so if you figure it out, I'd rather you not out the area on here. PMs are fine though.

Anywho, we're trying to decide the MVP for our football all-star team. Player A is a pretty good athlete and has been for his entire varsity career. Technically he's a running back, but he really broke out as a receiver this year since there are two other talented backs on the team. He has great speed, but needs to be in the open field to really break off runs (hence his transformation into a Z-back). He put up great numbers.

Player B is the superior athlete and will probably play at a Division I school. His father was a Divsion I player and Pro-Bowler, and took over the team a year ago. Sonny put up very good numbers as a quarterback except....
Long before the season even started there were rumors about recruiting. The school finally had to do an investigation, found "someone" guilty (the document has remained sealed) of attempting to recruit players and no member of the actual team was deemed ineligible (even though at least one kid who transferred gave his address as an empty hunting cabin). This was the program's second violation since the father took over.
After a long court battle the team, though undefeated and ranked in the state top five, were unable to continue playing. The father stepped down as a last-ditch effort to keep the team in the playoffs, but the school still had to drop out.

So, who is our MVP? The kid who is one step away from being a top-tier athlete? Or the top-tier athlete whose own program was investigated and found out to be guilty?

 

[CYowSMR]

Who was the best player? IMO, MVP means the best player. Don't take an award away from a kid because his father refused to be honorable.

 

[Versatile]

If the award is "Player of the Year," you can certainly factor off-field factors into the equation. But you also don't want to look like you're just a bunch of haters.

 

[BillyT]

I know the situation. Been following it.

If I was on staff, I would go with the quarterback.

I would hate doing it, but that's what I would do.

 

[MonsterLobster]

I used to spend a lot of time fretting and even losing sleep over these all-area team decisions. A former editor told me to forget everything else - schedule, team, scandal, recruiting, everything else - and just choose the best football player. I find it helps to imagine I'm putting together a pick-up football team from all the kids in the area and the player of the year is the one I'd pick first.

 

[Rhody31]

I used to spend a lot of time fretting and even losing sleep over these all-area team decisions. A former editor told me to forget everything else - schedule, team, scandal, recruiting, everything else - and just choose the best football player. I find it helps to imagine I'm putting together a pick-up football team from all the kids in the area and the player of the year is the one I'd pick first.

Best football player? Or player who had the best season?
Because the two are often different.
We go with who had the better season.

 

[MonsterLobster]

I used to spend a lot of time fretting and even losing sleep over these all-area team decisions. A former editor told me to forget everything else - schedule, team, scandal, recruiting, everything else - and just choose the best football player. I find it helps to imagine I'm putting together a pick-up football team from all the kids in the area and the player of the year is the one I'd pick first.

Best football player? Or player who had the best season?
Because the two are often different.
We go with who had the better season.

I suppose my language was a bit vague, and you raised a good point. I would consider the stats and what I saw and, at the end of the year, pretend I was choosing an all-star team for a pick-up game. Who would I pick first? That's almost always going to be the one who you think would, on the basis of what he had done that season, make the biggest difference in the game.

 

[ColdCat]

why punish the QB for something his father did? If we was the best player, name him the best player.

 

[BillyT]

why punish the QB for something his father did? If we was the best player, name him the best player.

Coldcat: This is just a thought. He had a great season. There were some terrific players around him who helped make that happen. Some of them were recruited.

Now, I would still pick him, but that's one way to view it.

 

[JimmyHoward33]

I wouldn't let off the field stuff factor in, at least in this case. Whichever of the two had the superior season is the way to go.

 

[farmerjerome]

I wouldn't let off the field stuff factor in, at least in this case. Whichever of the two had the superior season is the way to go.

Usually, this is how I feel. However, off the field stuff up here usually means grades or suspension for something minor. We've never had anything close to this level, that's why we're debating.

 

[Matt1735]

Is it a player of the year or MVP? If a team cheated to make the playoffs, then no performance was valuable enough. If it's a player of the year, then go off this year's stats and pick the best one.

 

[pressmurphy]

I'm familiar with the situation.

Firstly, I don't buy that the QB is D-I material. More to the point, though, it's what he did this year that matters, not what might be in store in his future.

And to that end, I go with player A. I don't think the QB breathes the same rarified air that a few recent QBs from your area did. At least as importantly, as far as I'm concerned his senior season never happened. Had the facts emerged in September rather than August, there would have been no football season at said school, and your QB would have been the No. 7 runner on the cross country team.

Take a cue from the people who dropped the team out of the state rankings altogether once the final appeal was denied.

 

[flexmaster33]

I used to spend a lot of time fretting and even losing sleep over these all-area team decisions. A former editor told me to forget everything else - schedule, team, scandal, recruiting, everything else - and just choose the best football player. I find it helps to imagine I'm putting together a pick-up football team from all the kids in the area and the player of the year is the one I'd pick first.

this

 

[farmerjerome]

Just to take this a step further, say a judge ruled that a team had to forfeit all of their wins. Do you put any players on an all-star team? Do any stats count?
To pressmurphy, I'm surprised. At the very least I thought the kid was a superb qb. I wouldn't be shocked if he got looks at lower DI school. He's not going to start a title contender, but he's decent.

 

[pressmurphy]

Just to take this a step further, say a judge ruled that a team had to forfeit all of their wins. Do you put any players on an all-star team? Do any stats count?
To pressmurphy, I'm surprised. At the very least I thought the kid was a superb qb. I wouldn't be shocked if he got looks at lower DI school. He's not going to start a title contender, but he's decent.

I respect your opinion. I just don't see enough physical and mechanical attributes in the kid for a D-I to take a liking to him.

 

[BillyT]

Just to take this a step further, say a judge ruled that a team had to forfeit all of their wins. Do you put any players on an all-star team? Do any stats count?
To pressmurphy, I'm surprised. At the very least I thought the kid was a superb qb. I wouldn't be shocked if he got looks at lower DI school. He's not going to start a title contender, but he's decent.

You have seen him, I have note.

But I read papers from all over the state every week.

My impression was typical coach's kid quarterback, grew up with the game and in a system he's gonna look good in.

I disagree with press on the folks dropping them. They were a great football team on the field.

I do *not* think you penalize the kids for what happened.

Just my opinion from out here in the counties.

 

[Matt Stephens]

Who was the best player? IMO, MVP means the best player. Don't take an award away from a kid because his father refused to be honorable.

See, this I disagree with. MVP means most valuable to their team, Player of the Year is the best overall player.

 

[1HPGrad]

Pretty sure Willie Williams would write in his diary you always pick the most dominant player and don't worry about all that off-the-field stuff.
Feel free to disagree with Willie.

 

[albert77]

We have a very similar situation going on nearby, involving girls basketball. Arguably the best player in the state, who signed with an SEC school, moved from one school to another amid allegations of recruiting. State association has already suspended the team where she's at now, for playing her after she was ruled ineligible, although the case is still tied up in court. Smart money says she'll end up playing out the season for a local private school that's a power in the academy ranks. If that happens, and she dominates as expected, then we may face a similar conundrum. So I'll be interested in seeing how your situation plays out.