College Football 2011: What a Suspension Means to the Oregon Ducks, Cliff Harris

When you're a student in college, it is very easy to dance your way into the trap of falling in love with your university. It hurts to see a player betray the "unspoken contract" of disciplinary issues. You see, when people spend thirteen years of their life building a resume to impress their colleges, it's an undeniably hefty load of work...and such work is naturally paired with a sense of pride if and when it is finally reached.

When high school football players, however, are recruited to Division I Universities — with or without the help of a certain “Will Lyles” not to be mentioned in this column — life is a little bit different. These players are phenomenal athletes that provide brilliant entertainment for the entire world, and their talents do not go unappreciated.

With their full-ride scholarships and almost over the top media attention, though, these students are given two main responsibilities. The first is to continue the legacy of their particular university and play to the best of their abilities. This is the more primary, objective responsibility.

The second is even simpler. The second responsibility is to not “blow it". Last week, Oregon defensive back Cliff Harris did the one thing that he wasn't supposed to do. Last week, Harris “blew it".

Cited for going 118 MPH in a 65 MPH zone on a suspended license at 4:30 AM, the Ducks star was pulled over in Albany, OR. Not good. This was his third time that he was caught speeding on suspended license in eighteen months. Again, not good. As more reports filed in, it became clear that the 2011 Nissan Altima was from a rental company and was rented after-hours to an employee of the University of Oregon. We all get it.

Harris is a charismatic athlete who is beloved by the Ducks fans and even began the campaign to call the championship game the “Natty". For a fan favorite, this is a difficult time.

For the coach who coined the slogan “Win The Day," Chip Kelly is now in a very uncomfortable position in regards to how to discipline his star—a young player that is coming out of a sophomore season in which he was named an All-American athlete and helped lead his team to an appearance in the National Championship. While Kelly is fortunately loaded with an arsenal at his will, as his team enters the 2011 season as the reigning Pac-10 Champion, just like that, the Ducks now have to look at the near future without a certain Cliff Harris, and it's no one's fault but his own. 

We want to make excuses. We want to say that recruiting violations are forgivable, and we want to hide the domestic abuse scandals under the rug.

Like many other suspensions in the past, Harris is an important player. He plays a pivotal role in the Oregon Ducks defense and is an integral factor for the up tempo special team success. But what we often forget is that he and his other student-athletes have an ethical and legal tie to the institution that they play for. Players that are only recently in the spotlight have a tendency to forget that their actions are under a microscope, and as a budding celebrity, it becomes very important to note that these players have to grow up a little bit faster than the rest of their collegiate peers.

This is, by no means, an attack on Harris. In the past two season's, he'd been one of the most electrifying players on the field and had been an attractive personality for a fan to admire. The issue is not personal with him. This issue is with his decision making. Harris's friends may be into street racing, but as a player representing the Ducks, he has to have the insight to step away. Coaches that work with Harris often say that he has a lot of issues with “maturity," but that they’d been making good progress with him.

Following the recent news, however, Harris is faced with a harsh truth: He is nothing particularly bigger than another spoke in a wheel of other capable student athletes. His opportunity to shine for the Ducks can be taken away very quickly. A screw up like his can (and will) end up in the indefinite suspension like the one that Coach Kelly announced that he will be facing. As a player, Harris needs to be more responsible for his actions if he hopes to continue his professional career — young and exciting defensive backs such as the newly recruited freshman De'Anthony Thomas can replace the disciplined Harris if he isn't careful. Thankfully, Kelly is not shying away from this same attitude.

"Earning an opportunity to represent the University of Oregon and this football program certainly rests far beyond a player's ability on the field of play. Our behavior out of the spotlight often is more important and will be held to a higher standard. Until Cliff is able to conform to the same standards all of us must comply with, his status will remain unchanged." 

As a Ducks fan, this is especially difficult for me because I hope and hope and hope to see Harris back on the field. He is an exciting player that helps their explosive team, and he is a perfect fit for their scheme. As a fan of the sport, I am nothing but disappointed in his lack of responsibility and can only hope that he learns from this mistake. He'll be suspended for at least the highly anticipated LSU opener. Before that, however, it wouldn't hurt for Chip Kelly to definitively make sure that Cliff Harris understands that he is more than just an athlete before he steps back onto the field.