by Keith Smitherman

Created on: August 05, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

If you are a true college football fan, meaning that you watch EVERY game that your team plays and follow how they recruit players when they are not playing, then you already know why they are treated like celebrities. It is because they are celebrated.

Any fan of any team is looking for their squad to recruit the next Bo Jackson or Reggie Bush. You can join websites that follow college football recruiting 365 days a year. On these websites you can watch videos of future college football players still in high school. These players obviously have the talent to move on to the next level, and when they make their decision it is sometimes televised live on ESPN.

If you follow recruiting then you know about the ranking system. A five star recruit is the most sought after by every school in the country. The five star players have a really good shot at making a pro football team and playing on Sunday afternoons is the ultimate goal of any football player. We treat them like celebrities because we watch them on television. Some get more exposure than others depending on how well their team performs on the field.

The question, why do we treat them like celebrities?, seems to imply that maybe we as fans shouldn't really treat them that way. That treating them like they are famous is a bad thing. Well maybe it is sometimes. Take Michael Vick's brother, Marcus, for example. He came to Virginia Tech and took over the quarter-back position after Michael move on to the Falcons. He was kicked off of the Virginia Tech team after stomping on an opposing player's head. Not long after that incident he was arrested for pulling a gun on three teenagers in Virginia. Obviously the young man did not have a positive male role model in his life. A fact that is made more obvious given the recent troubles of his older brother Michael and the dog fighting scandal he is going through.

At the end of the day, we are all responsible for our own decisions. But maybe if Marcus would have had a positive role model he would still be playing football. Maybe if we as fans did not treat him like a celebrity he wouldn't have let his fame go to his head. I believe that he thought that he could do no wrong, never have to answer for his actions, and continue on into pro football and live the good life. Sadly, for him that dream has faded.

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