First, I want to prelude this with I am not a sports writer. I like sports, I talk sports, but I do not write sports. Not least of all because there are writers far more eloquent and knowledgeable than me who write sports stories as powerful and as touching as a column in the New Yorker. Sports writers are my favorite kind of writer, and I will not discredit them by pretending to count myself as one of their own.

But for what I have to say today, sports are only a small part of a greater issue.

Late last night, Dorial Green-Beckham and two other members of our Missouri Tigers football team were arrested in our stadium parking lot on marijuana possession charges.

Now, I’ve seen what most people are saying. “It’s not a big deal,” “it’s just a college kid thing,” and “everyone gets in trouble,” are all reasons I’ve read today as to why we should just pass this off as just a dumb mistake.

Dumb mistake is right. But I have other issues with all those stated above.

Starting with “it’s not a big deal.” Ok, it’s not a big deal in the greater scheme of things. Down the line, DGB will ultimately be okay, and his life is not detrimentally affected. But for right now it is a big deal, because it prevents him from doing what he came here to do: play football. He has already been automatically suspended for this weekend’s SEC game against Vanderbilt, and we don’t know if there is more to come. So for him and Tiger football fans, yes, this is a big deal.

But moving on to larger problems because the world doesn’t revolve around football, as much as it seems to everyone – including myself – I see a problem rooted in “it’s just a college kid thing.” Yes, DGB is a college kid. And yes, college kids smoke pot. That’s all fine and good and “normal” as defined by most of society. But here’s my thing: DGB is a college kid but he isn’t just a college kid. He’s an athlete. And not just an athlete, he’s a damn good one. A wave of MIZ-DGB started from the day speculation began that he was coming to the day he signed Mizzou to the day of his first collegiate touchdown last week. DGB is by no means a normal college student.

In my opinion, as an athlete well known and valued on not just this campus but on a larger, national scale, he is a role model. There are young Tiger fans in the stands and at home every weekend, watching him play and making dreams around the chants of “MIZ-DGB.” So whether Dorial likes it or not, people look up to him. Once you accept the perks of “star athlete” status, you also accept the responsibility of being a role model to those who view you as a star athlete. And role models do not get arrested in the football stadium parking lot for smoking 3 days before a game. They just don’t.

People saying “free DGB” clearly haven’t learned anything from our last year of Pinkel, Paterno, Petrino incidents which if nothing else, have proved that no one, not even athletes or multimillion dollar coaches, are above the rules. DGB might have been just smoking pot, and his absence will not be detrimental to the team on Saturday, but this should send a greater message to sports fans and our community in general. Anyone in a position of power or even in a position where at least, they have some influence over other people, should be and will continue to be held up to a higher standard. Those who are lucky enough to have opportunities not extended to everyone should be too. That’s the return for either the money or even just the prestige that comes with whatever you do. Once you’re in the spotlight, it never really dims on anything you do.

Does anyone remember Blaine Dalton? He was a star quarterback coming out of Blue Springs South High School, and during my early high school days I remember reading about the kid who could be the next big star, following the likes of Brad Smith and Chase Daniel. If you don’t remember Dalton, it’s because he didn’t play. Arrested for a MIP and then just a few months later, a DUI, Dalton saw his dreams die in the wake of two stupid, stupid decisions. He said he didn’t drink more than any other college student but here’s the kicker, again: he was never just another college student. The first time, Coach Pinkel suspended him from the team saying he holds quarterbacks to a higher standards. My question is shouldn’t we hold them all to higher standards?

To say that what DGB does during his free time is irrelevant to what he does on the field is ignoring so many other aspects that being an athlete means. How many people wish they could have the opportunities given to DGB and to Dalton? How many people would take that opportunity and act every bit as appropriately as required of them? Furthermore, to expect special treatment for people who are famous, whether on a large or small scale, is an insult to our criminal justice system. And quite frankly, DGB gets what he deserves, because he has hugely disrespected our football program, smoking in the parking lot of the very stadium where he is revered.

I love Missouri football as much as the next person you see on campus. This isn’t about the football. Yes, it frustrates me that our WR is out for a game, even though I know his absence isn’t going to hurt that bad. And this isn’t about pot. Yes, DGB can smoke all he wants, because it’s not my future that is dependent on his football abilities. This is about doing things right and doing things wrong. If he is stupid enough to do illegal activities in a public area and he gets caught, then I think he deserves to get in trouble every bit as much as whatever no-named student got caught doing the same thing a few cars over in a different lot.

This might just be one incident for DGB. Let’s hope this is just one incident for DGB. Because as Blaine Dalton could tell him, his dreams aren’t worth a couple of “dumb mistakes.”