Bison football facing plenty of judgment

If any of you read my column on Monday, I had discussed if coach Craig Bohl was doing the right thing by allowing the players facing voter fraud allegations to play and the damaging result it could have on NDSU.

My deadline for the column was Friday, and as the paper was being printed, even more news came out over the weekend on the situation. Absolutely huge news.

After the Bison cruised to a 22-7 victory over FBS opponent Colorado State, athletic director Gene Taylor told reporters there will not be any suspensions handed out to the football players involved.

Whoa there.

Taylor definitely shocked many people with that announcement. Just before that, the word was that disciplinary actions wouldn’t be taken until after the court date. Bohl later confirmed at a press conference that Taylor’s announcement was true.

And of course, the media pounced.

The news spread across the nation and articles, columns and video blogs popped up everywhere. Everyone questioned Bohl, Taylor and the University on how such a drastic announcement could be made before a court appearance even happened.

In a press conference, Bohl stated that there are certain details out there that he cannot discuss. Those details will eventually get released.

And with that one statement, I am holding my tongue.

As a media member, I know it is an unwritten rule to relinquish my opinion on the situation. Blowing it out of proportion is also heavily encouraged.

No, not yet anyways.

I trust Bohl and Taylor on their decision. The football program has a history of being very harsh when it comes to punishing players and Bohl has run a no-nonsense program in his nine years of coaching at NDSU.

Just a few years ago, the Bison football program resembled an NFL team, making news all year of players getting into trouble with the law. The worst of it was thousands of dollars in merchandise being stolen from Best Buy. Bohl swiftly took action and booted the involved players faster than me switching the radio station when One Direction comes on.

But that isn’t stopping many from lashing out on the decision. Punishing players, especially when some are stars for the team, will always be questioned. It’s what the media does. Not to mention, NDSU is an easy target for criticism.

If this case involved the Boy Band Academy that UND played in their opening game, the media would be half as interested in a voter fraud case.

But National Champs are under the microscope.

Everyone wants to criticize the top of the mountain; especially when they are making positive headlines. That’s why people hate Justin Bieber. Or maybe it’s just because of his hair.

Anyways, all summer, the news around NDSU football was the national championship and all the returning players they have for this season. It was all positive stuff.

Once this voter fraud fiasco came out, the media was chomping at the bit to write some negativity.

I, for one, am going to hold my judgment. Until further details come out, I think the program deserves the benefit of the doubt. And as you may have noticed, the only judgments I made in this column were on the people that deserved it.