The Meaning of Honor

Those of you who know me, know that I'm a HUGE BYU fan. (Not relative to my size, we'll save that discussion for another day, but relative to how much I love my alma mater.) This week was an emotional roller coaster for BYU basketball fans everywhere. Brandon Davies, a starting sophomore forward on the team, reported to the school an Honor Code violation. BYU, consistent as always, dismissed him from the team for the remainder of the season. The timing could not have been worse. With two regular season games left, carrying their highest national ranking ever, the chance to win the Conference title outright and get their potentially highest seed in the NCAA tournament ever, losing a starting player is a sucker punch to the gut.

The team found out on Tuesday and got annihilated at home the following night by New Mexico. Obviously, that game was not so much about basketball X's and O's, but the emotion of losing a teammate and all the accompanying ramifications. This loss was far worse than an injury. Injuries don't involve decisions and will, they just happen. I'm sure there was a degree of betrayal felt by all the players on the team, in spite of the fact that they still care about Brandon and his future, both as a basketball player and as a human being.

With potentially the National Player of the Year on the team in form of Jimmer Fredette, BYU's basketball program has gotten unprecedented media attention this season. Brandon Davies' situation therefore was shouted about in the media for all of the college basketball world to hear. I cannot imagine how horrible he must have felt, not only for having his sins shouted from the mountain tops, but knowing how his team would be affected by his absence. There was lots of support for BYU's actions in the media, but also a lot of criticism. The criticism was more frequently found in blogs and anonymous commentary and the predictable charges of stupidity, hypocrisy, lack of forgiveness, etc. were leveled both at the University and the Church.

As I always have been, I was proud to be a BYU Alum this week. The Church has standards and those have not and will not change. They have always treated students equally whether they are famous or not. The Honor Code is not a surprise to anyone who attends BYU and no-one going to school there is surprised by the expectations. In fact, they are probably hammered on more in the athletic department than anyplace else because the BYU athletes are often the face representing both the University and the LDS Church. This week, they maintained their standards. Even though part of me secretly wished for just a minute that they weren't so dang efficient and consistent--that maybe they could have ignored it just until the end of March--they did the right thing. That is honor. That is what the Honor Code is about.

I was very curious to see how the game would go today after their abysmal game on Wednesday. Happily, today was a different feeling. The team struggled in the first half. But on Senior Day, the last day of the regular season, and still having the chance to win a piece of the Conference Championship, they showed up big time in the second half and won. More importantly than the win, I think, is what took place on the sidelines and after the game. Brandon Davies, after confessing his mistake, sat on the bench. There he was for all the world to see. That takes some serious courage. He was welcomed by the crowd and the team.

After the game, as the team celebrated their accomplishments by cutting down the nets, the crowd stuck around for a long time. Brandon Davies climbed the ladder to take his turn cutting down the net and got arguably the loudest cheer of the day. That is honor too. Brandon is young and he made a mistake. But I was so proud of the reaction from the crowd, because we preach repentance and forgiveness in our Church. I would hope that Brandon felt the love and support of the fans and his team, because I'm sure we all hope that he comes back to play basketball. More importantly, we hope he rights the ship. The fact that he had the courage to admit his error at the time he did speaks volumes for his integrity. I wish him the best. In the end, I think the whole incident shows the importance of individual and institutional honor and I'm proud of how it was handled.

Now I can start praying for divine intervention in tournament play. Is that wrong?!!

GO COUGARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!