When I tore my ACL, I didn’t tweet about it. I rehabbed. Alone. In silence. Like a man.
Another week, another millionaire athlete with a hot take. Look, I’m not going to name names—you know who I’m talking about—but these athletes have opinions about everything now, and let me tell you something: when I was playing, we didn’t tweet. We didn’t post. We didn’t “raise awareness.” You know what we did? We played. We left it all on the field. And some of us left parts of ourselves on that field permanently.
I played the game. All-Conference Honorable Mention, 2006. So I know what I’m talking about.
When Athletes Have Opinions Instead Of Grit
I tore my ACL during my sophomore year at a Division III program. Coach said I had “real potential.” I was on the verge of a breakout season—third-string, sure, but working my way up. Then one bad tackle in practice, one awkward landing, and it was over.
You know what I didn’t do? I didn’t go on social media and cry about it. Mainly because social media didn’t really exist yet, but also because I had dignity. Furthermore, I had something these guys today don’t understand: perspective.
I rehabbed. I moved on. Consequently, I found other ways to contribute to the game I love—like right now, writing this from Newswax headquarters, where I come in every single day to tell you the truth about sports. You’re welcome.
The Problem With Athletes Who Have Opinions
These days, an athlete stubs his toe and suddenly he’s got a foundation. Back in my day—and I know how that sounds, but back in my day—you played through pain. You didn’t talk about your feelings. You certainly didn’t talk about politics, because what does a running back know about foreign policy? Shut up and play.
My brother says I’m “stuck in the past.” However, my brother went to college on an academic scholarship and now works in “consulting,” whatever that means. He never played organized sports past eighth grade. Similarly, he never tore his ACL for something he believed in. So forgive me if I don’t take his opinion on athletics seriously.
What Sports Used To Mean
Here’s the thing: sports used to be an escape. You turned on the game, and for three hours, you didn’t have to think about anything except who was winning and who was losing. It was pure. It was simple. It was American. As I wrote in my piece about how modern sports have gone soft, we’ve lost something essential.
Now? Now I can’t watch a pregame show without getting lectured. Now I have to hear what the point guard thinks about economic inequality. Meanwhile, these guys make $40 million a year to throw a ball. A ball! And they want to lecture me?
From Headquarters: A Final Thought
I need to wrap this up. It’s almost 5 PM, and unlike some people, I don’t work from home. I show up to the office. I put in the hours at my desk. Just like I did on that field, before everything changed.
The game gave me everything. And today’s athletes have opinions that spit on it. Nevertheless, I’ll keep showing up. I’ll keep telling the truth. From headquarters. Where it matters.
Am I the only one who remembers when sports was sports?
Didn’t think so.
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