The unprecedented loop of indecision regarding the tragic saga of Maryland University’s Jordan McNair and his recent death has underlined the central problems of the NCAA and universities alike. Here is a brief synopsis of the timeline regarding the incident.
Throughout the narrative of the story, current and former players, football staffers and individuals close to the program have spoken about the culture of Terrapin football and the toxicity of the program leaving nothing up to the imagination of the public.
The program was said to be coached in an environment based on fear and intimidation. Extreme verbal abuse, belittling and humiliation were complemented by the promotion of unhealthy eating habits, such as over- and under-eating.
In light of McNair’s hospitalization, the coaches held a team meeting in which players freely criticized the methods of training. Players said although head coach DJ Durkin was initially receptive, when preseason workouts and training camp opened Aug. 3, they returned to their preliminary state.
It is understandable and at times warranted for collegiate athletes to experience grueling workouts and lengthy lectures, but the depth and magnitude displayed by the Maryland football staff is clearly abusive.
Based strictly on statistical analysis, the sheer sum of turnover between staff and athletes is unprecedented. Durkin’s staff only had four assistants from 2016—one of which was athletic trainer Rick Court—still on the payroll and more than 20 players have opted to transfer within the past two years.
A current player stated Durkin and Court would feed off of each other and would pick targets they viewed as physically and mentally weaker to bully. In a way, it is eerily similar and draws parallels to the 1971 Stanford Prison Experiment.
The trial was formulated to test and investigate the psychological power of the effects of alleged supremacy highlighted in the relationships between prisoners and prison guards. Volunteers were randomly assigned to their positions, either officer or inmate, in a mock prison. Participants quickly and almost inherently reverted to the instinctual viewpoint of their perceived position. Officers enforced controlling measures and imposed verbal and psychological torture on the prisoners and the prisoners accepted the punishment.
Durkin and Court embody vicious authoritative command similar to what is demonstrated in the experiment. Durkin, before accepting the position at Maryland, coached alongside Jim Harbaugh at the University of Michigan and Urban Meyer at Ohio State University, both of which encompass a sense of elite professionalism, have been perennial powerhouses and had no disciplinary problems under their supervision. However, when given the ability to command his own troops, he inevitably took it beyond healthy measures.
But the problem does not limit itself to this hypothetical ceiling. The stigma of administrating power is a recurring issue and can be viewed in all aspects of authority. Maryland and the NCAA allowed Durkin to be reinstated.
Read that sentence again. Durkin was reinstated. Maryland validated Durkin’s actions.
It took the backlash of an entire state for the board to terminate their ties with Durkin.
Hassan Murphy, an attorney for the McNair family, said it best when he spoke publicly on the issue after Durkin’s reinstatement.
“How can a student-athlete be called an [expletive] as he is in the early stages of death, dying before their eyes, with no action taken, and yet no one be held accountable,” Murphy said.
What could the board have logically thought to themselves to rationalize their decision?
“Well, it’s just one life lost.”
“We have been playing better football since Durkin has been here.”
“Just give it a few weeks, people will forget about it.”
No.
I don’t think they even thought about it critically. I think they did what most bystanders do—look the other direction.
The lack of a moral code among the big influencers clarifies the lack of sensitivity felt by those in the position to make a change. The magnitude of the situation does not hit home for them. It is a despicable truth of power.
Despite all this criticism and all the headlines, let us not forget a young man died. A life was taken and he cannot be replaced. This tragedy left a mother without her son, teammates without their brother and this world without Jordan McNair.
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