Giant leap into shame?

Barry Saunders on Steve Smith: Giant leap into shame?
By Barry Saunders
Raleigh News & Observer
Posted: Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2008

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/290/story/319006.html

The biscuit didn't fit through the helmet, thank goodness. Too bad the chicken did.

What is it with black professional athletes from Charlotte and self-respect, with their inability to take the high road when a few coins are jangled in front of them?

More than a decade after Charlotte Hornets forward Larry Johnson let someone talk him into dressing up like an old lady to sell basketball shoes -- remember those forgettable "Grandma'ma" ads? -- Carolina Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith let someone talk him into leaping into the stands ostensibly during a game and eating a piece of fried chicken through his helmet's face mask.

It'd be interesting to find out what the meeting went like, when someone said, "Mr. Smith, in the year 2008 we want you to score a touchdown, then run and leap into the crowd to eat a piece of fried chicken. Did we mention you'll eat it through your face mask? And you'll be befuddled by the biscuit."

There were three possible responses Smith could've given.

A. Ask "Are you crazy?" and fire his agent.

B. Say "Otay. We gon' hab some watermelon wid dat?"

C. Reach for my switchblade and ... oops, sorry: that's what I would've done.

Nobody loves chicken more than I do, but I wouldn't leap into the stands even if Bojangle's or the colonel promised me a lifetime supply of the barnyard pimp. Wonder what they promised Smith?

Even if leaping into the stands for chicken seemed like a good idea a couple of weeks ago -- trust me, it wasn't -- you'd think he would've had second thoughts following last week's historic political occurrence. One rumor on the Internet is that President-elect Obama is going to replace the Rose Garden with a watermelon patch.

Just wait for the chicken jokes.

Efforts to reach Smith through the Panthers organization were unsuccessful, but professional athletes usually deny that they're role models -- unless they're trying to persuade us to buy a certain brand of sneaker, drive a certain kind of car or wear a certain brand of drawers. Even if you're not a role model as a professional athlete, you should be one as a man. And a black man in 2008 should not be leaping into the stands to eat a drumstick through his helmet.

Think I'm overreacting? I'll tell you what: There's no way such a minstrel act would've appeared on TV in 1968, when most athletes possessed some social consciousness. You can't imagine someone proposing that Jim Brown or any other athlete with dignity leap into the stands and grab a drumstick and biscuit.

Anthony Myles, a former professional basketball player in Germany who is now a librarian at the N.C. School of Science and Math, was forthright when asked if he would have accepted such an endorsement deal.

"Everybody's got a price," Myles said, "but I'd like to think I could've refused. I wouldn't advocate anybody doing it, but you wouldn't expect an NFL star. ... Maybe somebody from the Arena Football League."

If Larry Johnson and Steve Smith were struggling to feed their families, their actions would still be objectionable, but you could cut them some slack.

But not when Johnson, before pulling on the granny dress and shedding his manhood, had just signed a contract for $84 million. Smith recently got a contract extension reportedly worth more than $50 million.

Still, that wasn't enough to keep him from leaping into the stands to eat a drumstick. Through his helmet. In 2008.

I didn't really see anything wrong with it, I bet Jake would have done the same thing. His Bojangles commercials have been even more ridiculous and goofy.

To add to that, He has already done two other commercials.

I don't remember those commercials, but they are awesome. They need to show those again and make some more like them.