SMU football has yet another scandal on its hands. But this one should have been solved by now.
As of this point, the reason for Justin Willis’ indefinte suspension is breaking team rules.
But there is much more to the story and the factors involved with this decision.
Samuel Willis, Justin’s father, is on record saying Jamil Beard had harassed his son for almost a year.
Why was nothing done before last week? Willis said he talked to Coach Bennett and other members of the coaching staff and nothing was done.
Bennett has refused to disclose what he did when Willis told him he was being harrassed, and we can only assume Justin’s claims are legitimate.
If a student, any student, is being harassed, administrators must get involved. There is no reason this situation should have been allowed to escalate into a fistfight at an off-campus party.
If Willis had been a female athlete who was being harassed, the situation would have been taken care of immediately. There shouldn’t be a double standard for men and women.
Student athletes are held to a higher standard than other students. They are constantly in the spotlight and they have their own student athlete code of conduct to adhere to in addition to the SMU student code of conduct.
So why is SMU Judicial Affairs delaying Willis’ return to the field?
Judicial Affairs has a responsibility to mediate this matter between Willis and Beard. They should assess a punishment that fits the offense. They should not however, have any control over Willis’ affliation with the football team.
The scope of available punishments from Judicial Affairs should not include suspension from the football team. Unless Willis is going to be expelled from SMU, he needs to be reinstated to the football team immediately. There is no reason why Willis should not be practicing while the Judicial Affairs investigation is ongoing.
If the Athletic Department wants to suspend him, so be it. But Bennett has already said he doesn’t want that to happen.
Athletics has finished its investigation and wants to get Willis back on the field. Judicial Affairs must stop hindering this process with its investigation.
As for an acceptable punishment, a one-game suspension is punishment enough. Willis will have to face the wrath of teammates and coaches for the rest of the season for his mistake. Anyone who has ever played a sport knows how hard it is to miss a game you could have played in and then to have your team lose.
Willis cannot be made an example. He made a mistake. He’s been punished, let’s move on.
