After initial reports that Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott had been injured in a confrontation while attending a concert in Panama City Beach, Florida on Monday, a lot of people waited for the other shoe to drop.
Prescott, along with teammates Damian Williams and Torrey Dale, were taking in a Waka Flocka Flame concert while on spring break around noon Monday when the incident occurred. A cellphone video showed the Bulldog quarterback on the ground and being kicked in the head by an unidentified man. Initial reports described the incident as a fight, although all three players characterized it as an assault in tweets later that same day.
That many people reserved judgment as to whether the Prescott and his teammates were victims of an assault or willing participants in a fight speaks to the skepticism of the day. Would this ultimately be another chapter of a long-running series of “When Athletes Go Bad?” Or were the players — Prescott in particular — victims of their own notoriety and, as such, targets?
Unless other details emerge that challenge the players’ account, this story will soon fade away, although there are some aspects of this story that are worth keeping in mind.
For one, players such as Prescott are, in some cases, targets. After leading MSU to a 10-3 season and finishing eighth on the Heisman Trophy balloting last year, Prescott is likely the most famous athlete in school history, and while he has earned his celebrity status on the field, that celebrity follows him off the field. While in many respects, he is a typical college student, in this important respect he is someone who can and will be singled out for attention, good or bad.
We also note here that social media continues to play an enormous role in turning events that might otherwise escape attention into news. Had the cellphone video not emerged and the reports of the incident not appeared on Twitter, chances are good that only those directly involved would have ever been aware of the incident.
The ubiquitous presence of social media can work to the net benefit or detriment to our society, based mostly on circumstances, of course. It is worth remembering, certainly, that we now live in a world where we should assume ever public act — and many private acts — will be captured and shared. Certainly, it is wise to keep that in mind.
Finally, there is the matter of how athletes conduct themselves. By virtue of their positions, athletes are a reflection on their universities. That can be, at times, an overwhelming and perhaps unfair burden to place on a college student, but it is part of the price student athletes pay.
That is not to say players forfeit their right to be young people and enjoy doing things young people do. Going on spring break, attending concerts, having fun with friends is something young people do. It is unfair and unrealistic to suggest that athletes deny themselves those pleasures.
Based on what we now know of the situation, it appears that Prescott and his teammates were more victims than willing participants in Monday’s incident. That belief supports what we do know of Prescott, in particular, who has always comported himself in a way that reflects well on himself and Mississippi State.
In that, we are inclined to conclude Monday’s incident was unfortunate, but not an embarrassment — for Prescott or the university.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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