Making the National Football League is something that every player on a major college football team strives for. And getting picked in the NFL Draft is their chance to see dreams both be accomplished and begin at the same time. The NFL Combine is the prelude to the draft, where players are able to showcase their talents in front of scouts from every team in the league.
At the Combine, players are paired together and spend their nights in a hotel paid for by the NFL. They go through drills, interviews and evaluations. Their every move is seen and analyzed by the scouts. These scouts want to know not only how they perform on the field but also what kind of person they're investing in and whether they can expect a fair return on their investment.
With all this happening in such a short period of time, it should go without saying that a player should be smart enough to be a model citizen, or at least put on the act of one, for the time being.
However, it looks as though the memo didn't get sent to NFL prospects DeAndre Hopkins and Mark Harrison. Hopkins, a wide receiver who hails from Clemson, and Harrison, a Rutgers product, shared a room in Indianapolis that was found not just in bad condition but utterly destroyed.
Naturally, neither player has any idea how it happened and is denying any involvement in the incident. Hopkins was quoted, through an agent, saying that he had "as much to do with anything in that room as you did." Curiously, though, he went on to say that his agent booked him an early flight home and "told [Hopkins] to hurry up."
I'm wondering, why was it so important for Hopkins' agent to book an early flight and leave quickly if, as he says, the room was in perfect condition when he left? It seems a bit suspicious that he was in such a hurry to leave if there was in fact nothing wrong with the room.
Hopkins also said in an interview with FOXSports.com that he thought Harrison "had nothing to do with the incident." Harrison's former coach at Rutgers echoed this statement noting that Harrison had never had instances such as this happen on past road trips and it would be largely out of character for him to commit such an act. It should also be pointed out that NFL sources told ESPN that they don't believe Harrison to be responsible.
Essentially what this situation breaks down to is one room that was trashed and two inhabitants of the room denying any knowledge or accountability for it. While I certainly don't know the exact details of the situation, I know that the players are responsible for the room in which they stay. Someone needs to take accountability for the damage done.
Players are judged on multiple seasons of work, but the spotlight doesn't shine any brighter than when all eyes are on them for one week at the combine. The 40-yard dash is as important during this time period as their score on the Wonderlic Test. A quarterback's ability to hit a receiver in stride is equally as important as his ability to hold an intelligent conversation with a member of a NFL team's front office.
Whether or not either player had involvement is secondary to the fact that the act happened in their room during the most important week of their young lives. The damage was documented by several of the scouts in attendance and opens up questions into their characters, whether fairly or not. The most important thing is that these men need to act like professional athletes. Responsibility speaks volumes about a person's characters, and until the truth comes out, Hopkins and Harrison - you're sacked!
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Jordan Bean is a freshman who has yet to declare a major. He can be reached at Jordan.Bean@tufts.edu.
