Why are college athletes so dumb sometimes?

I’m sure I’m not the first person to ask this question, but I can’t refrain asking it anyway.  I’m a huge college football fan and I’m coming to realize that there are more than the traditionally thought of two seasons of college football: regular season and recruiting season.  There is also summer season and the mini-season between the end of the regular season and bowl games where incredibly talented athletes do incredibly stupid things to get themselves in trouble with the law or in academic trouble.  This usually ends up with the player ineligible for varying lengths of time or kicked off the team.  This article is the catalyst for this post.  For those too lazy to click: Preston Parker, a rising star athlete, at Florida State just paid a $200 fine incurred in 2006 for trying to steal a $10 DVD from Best Buy, after getting arrested for illegal possession of a firearm and marijuana last week.

Let that sink in for a second.

First, he tried to steal a $10 DVD.  Do you really have to try to steal something that is only $10.  If you can’t afford to spend $10 on a DVD, you probably should be saving your money to buy important things, like food.

Second, it took him at least a year and a half to pay off the fine.  Did he think it was just going to go away if he didn’t pay it?

Third, its kind of funny to me that now that he’s in a whole lot more trouble for possible felony gun possession he worries about paying the fine.

Last, why the hell would you do really stupid stuff like this when you’re on your way to possibly being a star in college football and having a shot at the NFL?  What goes through your head that tells you its a good idea to carry a weapon that’s not correctly permitted, particularly when you have a shot at playing a game for a living?  Is it really hard for you to stop and say, “Hey, I could carry this gun around, but if I get caught I’m probably going to get into a fair amount of trouble and I might not be able to play football anymore.  If that happens, I’ll have to depend on making good grades and getting a degree to get a job after school, which isn’t nearly as cool as playing in the NFL.  Let’s forget about the gun.”

Maybe I’m a jerk, but that doesn’t seem like difficult math to me.  I know this isn’t a question that anyone can answer, and I’m sure I’ll have to watch this happen over and over, but its so angering to see kids throw away the amazing opportunities they get.  I’d kill to go back and re-live my college soccer days, even without a real possibility of playing professionally.  I can’t imagine how someone wouldn’t take better care of their athletic career when they do have a shot of playing in the pros.