I know that I have personally been guilty of being overly critical of some college athletes about their performance on the field of play.  Someone’s not giving full effort, a step too slow, or otherwise just not putting it all out there on the floor for their team and their fans.

Here’s a story that should make everyone check that attitude for a minute.

Tennessee’s preseason All-America guard, Chris Lofton, started off the 2007-08 season in an absolute funk.  He wasn’t scoring, his play seemed a bit lackluster, and couldn’t hit a three to save his life.

Well, the facts were really that he was battling to actually save his life. 

Diagnosed with testicular cancer following a random NCAA drug screen after the 2006-07 season, he fought a private battle with the cancer, with only the closest of the close among his family and friends knowing what he was going through.

Meanwhile, local sports fans and commentators were critical to varying degrees about Lofton’s performance.  There were calls for him to be benched along with wild speculation about what his problems on the floor were.

I just think that this is a good opportunity to remind everyone that college athletes are young kids, from divergent backgrounds, with any number of personal problems that can impact their play.  So, before you take time to bash someone on a message board, call in to a talk show, or otherwise express an opinion without all the facts, slow down and take Chris Lofton’s situation to heart.

Brendan and I enjoyed a spinach and chicken pie the other night and I have a bunch of leftover phyllo dough. Anyone have a good recipe that uses phyllo? Extra credit if it includes curry!

Heh: “There is one theme, however, that runs through not-for-attribution conversations with both sides [in the Clinton-Obama race]: Each candidate thinks the other has unmitigated gall.”

Remember Barack Obama’s pick-up game with the North Carolina Tar Heels? Well, technically speaking, it violated NCAA rules. But for once, the NCAA is taking a sensible line: “This was a unique situation and not an NCAA issue,” said a spokesman. “It certainly was a great opportunity for the student-athletes to interact with a presidential candidate.”

In honor of May Day, Sen. Joe Lieberman would like to remind you that it’s a “good question” whether Barack Obama is spending today contemplating the plight of the proletariat and listening to songs like this:

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;)

In other news, Pajamas Media asked me to elaborate on my Obama/Wright post in an article for their site, so I did. It’s not my best work, and both liberals and conservatives will find plenty to dislike in it. But I hope it’s at least food for thought.