This blog is about Iowa's sophomore running back Adam Robinson who was arrested for marijuana possession in late December. Subsequently, he was released from the football team in early January and now he is asking for a second chance. Right before Robinson's arrest, another player on the team was arrested for drug possession and Robinson claims his coach was under a lot of national spotlight affecting his decision. Robinson also struggled academically earlier in the year which could have affected the coach's decision. If these things had not occurred, Robinson believes his coach would not have made such a harsh decision.
Adam Robinson realizes he messed up and is taking the necessary measures to make changes in his life by getting back on track academically and planning to enroll in drug counseling. However, are these changes enough to ensure his marijuana use never happens again. Does Adam Robinson deserve another chance at Iowa? Would it be fair to the rest of the team for the coach to let him back on the team?
http://espn.go.com/blog/bigten/post/_/id/22555/second-chance-for-iowas-adam-robinson
Growing up in a family that has a very open mind about life, I don't feel like marijuana possession is all that bad. He could have had things far more worse like steroids or cocaine. With that in mind, I feel Adam should have a second chance. He already admitted he was wrong and is trying to turn himself around academically. People mess up and get lost in the game of life, give them a chance to get back on track and finish their game.
ReplyDeletePossession of Marijuana reflects a lot of poor signs of character and judgement. For me, if you are an athlete, especially at an elite level such as college football, you need to understand that your body is the "big bucks". I'm sure that he is on scholarship to play football at Iowa, and therefore it can be said that he is being paid to play there. With this conclusion drawn, it shows that he is completely ignorant of the big perspective (being that he is being paid to play football) and too immature to put other people ahead of himself. He embarrassed the entire association by his inability to realize that he is a member of a team (including coaching staff) and he must relate to and think about it with every decision that he makes. Sounds too tough? Maybe he shouldn't play football.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that stands out to me the most about Robinson's actions is that he decided to stay at Iowa, despite having options to play football at other schools. I feel as though this shows that he sincerely wants to turn his life around and make it up to his team and fans. He could easily have went with the easy and selfish decision of leaving in order to play for another school. But instead, he decided to accept the consequences of his actions and try to redeem himself. Therefore, I believe that he should be granted a second chance to be on the team, pending completion of the list in the article including getting his grades up. The only reason to be ineligible for a sport is to not try. Therefore, his future grades should be an indicator of how important a second chance truly is to him.
ReplyDeleteWhile I do not think that marijuana possession should be a big deal, I believe that the coach made the right decision. Most athletes, especially those affiliated with a school, sign a contract at the beginning of their season stating that they will not use illegal drugs. Adam Robinson clearly violated this rule. If he has already gotten arrested, the chances of him getting arrested again are likely if he does not face consequences. I think that he should be allowed back on the team after he has completed drug counseling and has gotten back on track academically. He needs to face some kind of consequences so that he will be less likely to face problems in the future.
ReplyDeleteI think that Robinson should have a second chance. First i believe that he must pay for his actions with rehab/substance abuse classes. He also needs to get his priorities straight. IN the beginning he signed a contract that probably outlawed substance abuse and he clearly broke that. I think the coach made the right choice by suspending him. He should not be kicked off the team for such a minor crime though.
ReplyDeleteDespite Robinson's rededication to academics and football, the fact remains that he did not maintain expected grade levels and was caught with an illegal substance. Coach Ferentz had every right to dismiss him, as he was setting a bad example and exhibited behavior that embarrassed the team and the University. If Robinson were allowed to play for Iowa again, Ferentz and his program would be sending the message that this behavior is acceptable as long as the player fixes his mistakes. However, I believe that Robinson should be allowed to play for another school if they are willing to let him because he seems genuine in his attempt to right his mistakes.
ReplyDeleteI think taking marijuana is a serious problem.It's drug which will easily make people addictive and that is to say it's difficult for people to get rid of it.When Adam had taken it once,you can not bet he would not take mariyuana again.However,if he do consider back to team a big events for his,de deseve a second chance to fix his mistakes.And school can make decision whether let him back to team or not depending on how disciplinary he treat himself.
ReplyDeleteIn I own perspective, Adam Robinson should not deserve the second chance. As a player, he should know that it is their team regulation to prohibit illegal drugs. However, it is he who break this rule with using marijuana. This shows that he is lack of responsibility and team spirit. If the coach let him return to team, it is possible to allow more players who may violate team rule in the future since they can be forgiven. Although no one is perfect that we should give second chance to people who do something wrong, it is also important for a team to keep its rule.
ReplyDeleteThe coach of a large football team is responsible for keeping order and control over his team. Situations such as this where one player gets into trouble for choices they have made tests the coach to make an appropriate decision and stand by it. Robinson appears to have deep regret for his decisions and sincerely hopes to make amends. However his statement he only did it "once in a while” shows that it was not a mistake he only did once, he did it repeated times. I feel that this takes away from his regret and sincerity. It makes it sound like he would have kept using marijuana if he did not get caught. As far as his grades are concerned, he knew what was expected yet still goofed up. If he were to get a second chance, it would have to be very very strict terms in order to uphold the coach’s authority of the team
ReplyDeleteThe coach of the team made the right decision by suspending Robinson. However, I think he deserves a second chance. While I don't believe that Marijuana should be illegal, the fact of the matter is the Robinson was breaking the rules by using the substance. Drugs such as alcohol, which are legal to abuse, can cause more harm than marijuana. I have had friends suspended from teams for marijuana possessions or arrests, so I don't think this is an uncommon situation. Marijuana possession is a victimless crime, and usually reflects more upon a persons upbringing than there character. I think that if Robinson improves his grades and agrees to a type of substance abuse program he should be given a second chance.
ReplyDeleteI think Robinson most definitely made mistakes that need to be accounted for. It sounds like he has made similar mistakes in his past and hasn’t taken the second chances his coach gave him very seriously. However, with the publicity his most recent stunt got, he seems to be cleaning up his act. He is sincere about going to therapy, and is taking steps to better his academic standing. I think if he sticks to those things, that he should be given a second chance. I think his mom is a bit too eager though, trying to blame his poor grades on his concussion. There are plenty of student athletes that get concussions and still make it through school. I think that Robinson and his coach should discuss the drug issue one on one instead of putting it in the news, because when it comes down to it, it’s no one’s business but theirs.
ReplyDeleteBack at my school in NY, being an athlete on a school team was a big deal and the coaches and staff of the school were very serious about maintaining high grades and were very serious about drug use. If a student was caught of possessing any type of drug in school and on the field, serious consequences were brought on by them. Growing up and seeing how serious my school was about possessing drugs really influenced my views about student athletes; therefore, I have to agree with releasing Robinson from the team. Student athletes, especially well known college athletes, have two jobs. They are there to represent the school on the field and to be role models for the rest of the students. Robinson has let down the school in both of those requirements. It is very hard for people to forget bad things people have done, so I agree with releasing him from the team.
ReplyDeleteTo me marijuana possession is not all that big of a deal. I say that if is legal (under medical conditions) in some states, then why should it not be available to the rest of the population? That being said, I 100% think that Robinson deserves a second chance to be on the team. If he can meet the guidelines listed on the article link, then I don't see any reason why Robinson will not have proven that he is worthy of a spot on the team.
ReplyDeleteThe problem lies on " whether Robinson deserves a second chance", and I would say no to this question. I believe that it was not the first time for Robinson to use marijuana ( he keeps using the marijuana for a period). During such period, Robinson didn't notice what he did was wrong and was such a disgrace for the team and for school. Until he got released from the team, he started to realize how serious the problem was and started to try to do something to redeem himself. Everything got too late. He should knew at the very beginning how serious the problem is, he should consider what the outcome would be. He seems to ignore these factors, which led to his releasing at the end.
ReplyDeleteI think that Robinson does deserve a second chance because he is staying in Iowa and he is taking steps to improve himself. However, I believe that the coach should not allow him back on the team until he has completed drug counseling and his grades are fully improved. When all of Robinson's priorites are in order, I believe that he deserves another chance to prove to his team, his coach and the University that he is ready to gain back their respect and trust.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I do not believe that marijuana is as terrible to your body as other drugs, it can still significantly harm the body of an athlete, especially an athlete who is participating in Big 10 football. I, having just done my ARP on an athlete who was addicted to drugs, believe that Adam can stop smoking marijuana and get back on track. He should be given a second chance, and if it isn't possible or if he isn't wanted at the University of Iowa, he should seek another team to play for, even if it means a lower level team. If he is serious about football, he will do whatever it takes to succeed.
ReplyDeleteAs long as he takes the necessary steps to ensure that he is truly sorry and is willing to change, Adam Robinson deserves a second chance. He should be drug tested regularly, as well as having to attend drug counseling. It might have been a bit harsh for the coach to kick him off of the team. He could have given him a warning, but, it could be that the coach is trying to make an example out of him. Robinson also needs to realize that being on a team is a privilege, and by having poor grades and making bad decisions, it can be revoked.
ReplyDeleteI feel the decision was made in a just manner, but not the coach's decision. The punishment to remove him from the team I feel is satisfactory with the rules and regulations set, but I do not feel the coach felt the same way, and was pushed by the media spotlight to remove him from the team. Although I agree with the punishment, I do not feel it should have been done, since the coach was not totally in agreement with the decision.
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