How many times have you sat in front of your TV like a potato enthralled by your favorite athlete? I can be found in front of the tube anytime the Redskins are dumping on some NFC central squad.

Along the way, we see blooper clips on ESPN and Sports Sound Off, but recently we have been seeing too many blunders of the misdemeanor and felony variety.

Often we see players given second chances so they can beat up their girlfriend later for ratting them out. With Packers phenom Mark Chmura grounded for sexual assault, it’s time we stop giving players the benefit of the doubt and start punishing them.

Sports release the competitive spirit. We can’t play ourselves, so we idolize players we all wish we could be. Sports allows me and every slopehead to purge our aggressive tendencies in the form of cheering. Frankly, I find nothing more exciting than when a 300 pound defensive tackle plants a quarterback on his back on third and short.

Instead of cheering, though, we should be jeering. It seems simple-minded that many professional athletes would jeopardize their privilege in society by lashing out. Truth be known, the athletes are demonstrating that they are not bound by the same societal constraints the rest of us are.

Agents tout their clients’ efforts at rehabilitation and proclaim their dedication to reform. Two months later, they are busted on charges worse than the first time. In reality, as long as agents market these players as celebrities, they will continue to behave incorrectly.

These stars, as a result, will continue to see and understand status as a player in terms of celebrity treatment rather than content of character. The disappointing aspect is that for many young players attempting to be the next Troy Aikman, Michael Jordan or Cal Ripken Jr., there will be three times as many players becoming the next Lawrence Phillips, John Rocker or Mark Chmura.

Players focus more attention on their contracts than being an example and model for younger athletes. Internal compasses guide most of us and tell us what is right and wrong. Money has a tendency to eliminate these aspects of character.

Please tell me what the difference is between making $60 million or $100 million. Players cry about how hard it is to manage such enormous checks. What the hell are they whining about? The NBA, NFL, NHL and other leagues of its kind are elite cash-sucking organizations meant to make money.

The more money a person has, the more disillusioned they become when it comes to their place in society. For example, Shaq’s truck costs more than our entire education. What’s the sense in that?

Many players jump from college straight to the pros to take care of their families.

From a male perspective, we can understand the necessity to be a provider for the family. Yet despite this, players take their celebrity status for granted and forget that young children regard many of them as heroes despite what the player may believe.

For most of us, our moral foundations came from our parents. My dad always used to say to me, “Son, if you place all your passion in football, what happens if you get hurt. If your life is wrapped up in material possessions, what happens if the house burns down?”

His point was simple. Sports are a hobby and should remain that way. For some, it’s a way of life, they play sports to provide for themselves or their families and that’s honorable.

The line blurs when players refuse to play because they think they are worth $60 million instead of $40 million. Is it possible to spend all that money? I can think of many ways to retire from $1 million, yet alone $60 million.

There should be strict limits on player profiles and treatment by owners. When players cause trouble, no matter how great of an athlete they are, they shouldn’t play again— ever. As role models, like it or not, they are responsible to the public for their actions. How many times do we see players given chances to reform and get their act together and despite this, they screw up in some way?

Would we, as normal citizens, be given these chances? If I were to get into a bar fight and throw someone through a window, would I be let go on my own recognizance? Probably not.

The line has blurred too often and it’s time we send the message to shape up or ship out.

As sports fans, we need to find the Stacy Freses, Marcus Fizers, Betsy Hamms or Erica Martinezes and look up to them as role models.

It is players like them that make sports great. They demonstrate the fighting spirit in us all and ignite the flame for competition. To those athletes who keep it straight, kudos. To those who don’t, I guess I’ll read about you in the police blotters.

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Andy Gonzales is a junior in political science from El Paso, Texas.