Turner Gill Wants Football Players and Gentlemen to Play for His Program

Just how distracting is Facebook and Twitter to college students? Do students put their social networking priorities higher when they make the switch from high school to college?

Kansas head coach Turner Gill has made it clear that his football players are not allowed to use Twitter. Many might wonder why Gill is so concerned about banning the players from using a social networking website. Can it really make a difference for an individual if a student athlete sacrifices using Twitter?

In the past, the University of Kansas has been known as one of the top party schools in the nation. While it hasn’t been ranked high recently, it is still known for its heavy party scenes that take place every night.

A lot of students come to Lawrence, Kan. and hope to have a good time while being enrolled as a student in Kansas.

Gill knows his players have the same expectations when they come to Kansas. However, Gill not only wants good football players, but also gentlemen. He wants the football program at the University of Kansas to be known as one of the best, however, he's willing to sacrifice that to give these kids an attitude adjustment and also build a football team with class.

Maybe Gill won’t lead the Jayhawks to a title with this type of strict coaching. However, if I was a parent, I’d rather have my kid receive an attitude adjustment from his football coach rather than be ranked in the top 25. Especially if the kid ran into problems in high school.

Maybe in the long run, Gill’s players will buy into the rules and respect him. Do players who show good character on the field and in the classroom find success on the field? That won't happen to every student athlete, but it's probable they'd find better results.

Not every head coach feels the need to place a ban on cell phones or the usage of social networking. However, Gill knows that the university he is coaching at can be famous for parties.

According to The Kansas City Star, some KU players claim the social networking was never a distraction. We’ll see if it makes a major difference when the team takes the gridiron.

For now, Gill wants a football program in which the football players come off as gentlemen and not just celebrities of the school. It’s likely that he feels in the end, it will lead to great success.