The Centre Daily Times reports that Nittany Lion defensive lineman Phil Taylor and linebacker Navorro Bowman have pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct and each was sentenced to a year’s probation. In addition, they will each have to perform 100 hours of community service and make restitution to the victim and to Penn State. This relates to the October ruckus at the HUB, where a group of PSU’s defense’s finest kicked the crap out of a hapless victim, whose offenses were frontin’ and party walkin’, whatever the hell those terms might mean.

Earlier, safety and co-captain Anthony Scirrotto was sentenced to a year’s probation as well.

Centre County Circuit Judge Bradley P. Lunsford admonished the athletes:

This community is becoming more and more frustrated with the actions of some athletes. I imagine the coaches are becoming frustrated. I imagine other athletes are also frustrated. And I know from the court’s perspective, I too am losing patience. It’s embarrassing to have to keep explaining to my kids why premier athletes keep getting into trouble.

And this Turkey wholeheartedly agrees. The off-field activities have been an embarrassment for far too long. We can no longer take the high moral ground in arguments about such events at other schools. Yeah, sure, the charges were knocked down to misdemeanors and no prison time will be served. So what? Is this the kind of crap we have to look forward to? I’m sick and tired of reading the words of apologists who say they’re just kids doing what kids do when testosterone overrides prefrontal cortex function. To hell with that—if they want to play football for one of the nation’s historically cleanest and most prestigious programs, then they’ve got to quell this obnoxious street thug crap. (And I haven’t even mentioned Lavon Chisley, the convicted murderer, until now.)

Is some of this the coaches’ fault? You bet! If these kids were brought up in deficient homes where the goals for a successful kid were either professional athletics or gang leadership, it is the coaches’ roles as surrogate parents to help these kids grow up and understand their responsibilities. Same thing if they grew up in sound, protective environments and are expressing their misdirected glee over escaping from the cage. The coaches and the kids share responsibility here.

We, as fans, should not tolerate this kind of thing. To handwave and say “boys will be boys” will only promote future recurrences. Let us not fail to learn from the mistakes of history.