March 03, 2011

BYU kicks Brandon Davies off team for violating honor code: Apparently, he admitted to sexual relations with his girlfriend.

posted by reenum to basketball at 12:30 AM - 28 comments

Oh, for fuck's sake.

posted by phaedon at 12:55 AM on March 03, 2011

"University spokeswoman Carri Jenkins said an honor code review is under way to determine if the BYU sophomore will be allowed to remain in school..."

If this wasn't so incredibly depressing it would be funny.

posted by feloniousmonk at 01:00 AM on March 03, 2011

Good thing God doesn't believe in tolerance, or in forgiving people for not being perfect, or He might be pissed about this...

posted by The_Black_Hand at 01:03 AM on March 03, 2011

As Jesus says in Hal Hartley's short film, The Book of Life: "Who are the Mormons?"

posted by afl-aba at 06:01 AM on March 03, 2011

Whether you agree with their honor code or not, Davies agreed to be bound by it when he took their scholarship.

posted by apoch at 06:07 AM on March 03, 2011

Before this happened, I would not have thought BYU would have punished a player for sexing his girlfriend -- regardless of an honor code. Kudos to them for living up to their principles, I guess, but it sends quite a message to future recruits. How big is the pool of eagerly chaste basketball players?

posted by rcade at 07:57 AM on March 03, 2011

First thought: wait till Dennis Rodman finds out about this.

Second thought: how the hell did Jim McMahon make it all the way through 5 years at BYU? (1 yr. redshirted)

Third thought: which one of BYU's upcoming opponents is going to be the first to feature a student section of screaming coeds in pioneer dresses?

Fourth thought: think of BYU student life as a down paymen...no, actually, I think I should pass on the delayed gratification/polygamy angle.

posted by beaverboard at 08:16 AM on March 03, 2011

I guess it could be worse. He could have been punished for going to Starbucks.

posted by bperk at 08:42 AM on March 03, 2011

I think the Honor Code was introduced because of Jim McMahon. Kind of like all the other changes after the Univeristy"s founder. Sure as hell (oops infraction I'm sure) they weren't based on his founding principles of the Morman Religion.

posted by gfinsf at 09:30 AM on March 03, 2011

Whether you agree with their honor code or not, Davies agreed to be bound by it when he took their scholarship.

Yep. Even if the school agrees to let him remain enrolled, I'd be shocked if he agreed to stay. I don't know anything about college hoops; do those who follow it reckon he will end up playing elsewhere?

posted by tahoemoj at 09:39 AM on March 03, 2011

I give them credit for sticking with their code. He knew the rules when he signed up. He took the Money follow the rules. I bet BYU is not on sports Ill for having the most athletes arrested.

posted by Debo270 at 09:40 AM on March 03, 2011

Noted by MayorCurley: ‎"Davies ... gave the Cougars length and size inside."

posted by yerfatma at 09:43 AM on March 03, 2011

"Davies ... gave the Cougars length and size inside."

Well, none of that would have mattered absent stamina.

posted by tahoemoj at 09:50 AM on March 03, 2011

Thats what she said..

posted by Debo270 at 10:01 AM on March 03, 2011

If you have never seen the Mormon episode of South Park, I suggest you find it. It is maybe the best episode ever.

posted by Debo270 at 11:37 AM on March 03, 2011

The one thing I am still waiting to hear is how exactly did the school find out about what happened? Did he turn himself in, or did somebody else do that to him? Maybe I'm focusing on the wrong question here, but I still think it would be germane to the topic. If he did turn himself in, kudos to the kid for have that sort of strength of character. If only he had used it before he slept with his girlfriend. Then again, we are talking about a young male college student...

Steve Young, BYU class of '83, said in an interview that BYU doesn't hide anything regarding its honor code when it recruits. This kid knew exactly what he was getting into when he decided to go there. It will be interesting to see how this does all play out.

posted by crqri at 11:45 AM on March 03, 2011

how exactly did the school find out about what happened?

Maybe the school keeps a close eye out for indicia like high fives and pats on the back from one's peers. Maybe a smile a little bit too broad, or a suspiciously sound night's sleep.

posted by tahoemoj at 11:49 AM on March 03, 2011

I guess it could be worse. He could have been punished for going to Starbucks.

Hey, they're serious about this stuff. Really. Once I was going to attend a conference at BYU, not a university function, just on their campus. They wanted all the attendees to sign this agreement that we wouldn't do all that non-LDS stuff while we were there, including ingesting caffeine. Fortunately for me, something came up.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 12:20 PM on March 03, 2011

Since BYU is entering the WCC next season I hope that the news get's out loud and clear that you can't get laid while as a student athlete there.

No nookie is one explanation Jimmer Fredette is so anxious to put the ball in the hole. A bit of wish-fulfillment.

posted by THX-1138 at 03:56 PM on March 03, 2011

Heather 'Dooce' Armstrong, who's a BYU alum, has a decent take.

posted by etagloh at 04:47 PM on March 03, 2011

Heather 'Dooce' Armstrong, who's a BYU alum, has a decent take.

Yes, that was good. A good reminder that we are talking about a 20-year old kid here who has to be feeling pretty terrible.

posted by bperk at 05:50 PM on March 03, 2011

What are Brandon Davies' options now? Can he play Div. I basketball elsewhere on a scholarship next season? Can he get a scholarship to sit out a year at another school? If he has to take a year off, is that a year of eligibility forfeited or is like a red shirt year? Can he make it as a pro, NBA, Europe, or otherwise?

I assume he is done with BYU.

posted by Aardhart at 07:10 PM on March 03, 2011

Yes, he made a mistake. And according to reports, that mistake was getting his girlfriend pregnant.

Another success!

posted by grum@work at 07:58 PM on March 03, 2011

Heard Georgia is suspending three of its players for showing up sober for two practices in a row. But maybe I'm just hearing things.

posted by graymatters at 09:33 AM on March 04, 2011

Most kids violate BYU's entire code a couple hours into a typical recruiting visit to other campuses.

posted by dyams at 11:54 AM on March 04, 2011

Seriously? An Honour Code? I don't see where the honour part comes in. Denial? Yeah, I see that.

Am I to believe that all the other students at BYU follow this code? Sure. I also have some brilliant moose pasture just north of Thunder Bay that's priced to move.

posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 08:41 PM on March 04, 2011

Kudos to them for living up to their principles, I guess

God instructs the Mormons that polygamy is OK. Utah wants to become a state, polygamy is now not OK. God instructs the Mormons that African Americans can't be priests. In 1976, they change their mind.

"If you don't like my principles, I have others."

- Groucho Marx (not Joseph Smith)

posted by owlhouse at 09:17 PM on March 04, 2011

Seriously? An Honour Code? I don't see where the honour part comes in.

In fairness to BYU, while academic honor codes traditionally concerned themselves with matters of intellectual and academic honesty (no cheating, no plagiarism, etc.), it's now very common for colleges and universities in the US to throw pretty much anything they don't want their students to do into the "honor code". The idea, clearly, is to use the power of a code that is widely respected and strongly adhered to, to curtail non-"honor"-related behaviors, but only a simpleton would think that it actually works that way. BYU is just doing a Mormon-flavored version of what is commonly done elsewhere.

posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:14 PM on March 05, 2011

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