The message is simple for LSU athletes: If you mess up, you will face the consequences.
For that, kudos to LSU coach Les Miles and the LSU Athletic Department.
The Tigers were dealt a blow earlier this week when they found out presumed starting linebacker Tahj Jones would miss the rest of the season along with three others.
Miles wouldn’t comment on the details of the loss, even amid reports from the Times-Picayune that Jones, linebacker D.J. Welter, offensive lineman Evan Washington and tight end Tyler Edwards were academically ineligible.
If that is the case, the LSU football program is proving to have its priorities, and more importantly, the priorities of its student-athletes in order.
While it doesn’t hurt that the Tigers are sickeningly deep at nearly every position on their roster, they certainly did not welcome the news with open arms.
Jones was expected to be an impact player the an LSU defense in 2012 after recording 27 tackles, a sack, a fumble recovery and an interception in mostly reserve minutes last season.
With only four returning linebackers with game experience, Jones could have been a lynchpin to LSU’s success this year.
But LSU is taking the proper steps toward sending its athletes, particularly those on the football team, into the world with the appropriate perspective.
Ask former LSU defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, who appears genuinely humbled after his dismissal from the team in August.
Again, to protect his players’ privacy, Miles didn’t confirm the reasons behind Mathieu’s ouster.
But Mathieu is back on campus after spending time in a drug rehabilitation center. He’s watching the team win from the stands rather than the playing field. His tuition is coming from his pockets rather than an athletic scholarship.
“We have a standard that our players are held to and when that standard is not met, there are consequences,” Miles said after Mathieu’s dismissal.
Those are some pretty hefty consequences for someone who just 10 months ago was a finalist for college football’s most prestigious award.
Look at last season, when the Tigers rallied in the face of adversity when senior quarterback Jordan Jefferson was indefinitely suspended for his possible involvement in a brawl at Shady’s Bar.
When the news broke, Miles conveyed his disappointment in a brief opening statement before turning the floor to his team’s leaders to address the media and publicly apologize for the team’s behavior.
The lessons are applicable for both the stars and the reserves on the roster.
Those select few destined for NFL will face even more scrutiny. Those who will instead use their degrees for a job off the field will already know that things aren’t always so easy.
Now is the time to learn those lessons.
They may carry the added weight of expectation and minor celebrity, but don’t forget that these players are kids.
LSU isn’t forgetting, but it isn’t coddling its players because of their status, either.
Nobody is guaranteed anything — the Tigers have made that clear — and that’s the appropriate message to send.
