by Zach Rosen
The asterisk has, in modern sports, become the scarlet letter of doubt. A permanent mark on any accomplishment achieved, resting to the top right of the prestigious number that an athlete has worked so hard to earn. But it is as noticeable and bold as the piece of crimson flair that so cruelly adorned Hester Prynne was also earned, for her sins were so iniquitous that she was condemned to forever publicly admit her sins.
Athletes who now are straddled with this unmistakable symbol will always be asked about their controversy, and their smile will always fade slightly in the midst of their revelry. Barry Bonds will always be looked down upon as a pariah and a cheater (as he should) but like it or not, he has the homerun record and his name will always appear beside the title. But in the words of Ronald Reagan “the silent majority has spoken”. Marc Ecko bought the ball, and before it was sent to baseball’s most hallowed ground (and I’m not talking about Steve Phllips‘ bedroom), it was burned indelibly with sports own version of the scarlet letter: the asterisk. Such a mark can be easily suggested, but only in the rarest of circumstances will the general public affix that sticker to the now disgraced athlete, accused and condemned but never proven. This why I am introducing the concept and I can only depend on you, the loyal readers, to give this movement legs and maybe someday, we can right these wrongs and eliminate an unfairly earned honor. I am asking the NCAA to put an asterisk beside Jarvis “Don’t call me Varnardo” Varnado’s block record.
This may seem harsh, he has never committed an NCAA violation (that he’s gotten caught for) and never took performance enhancing drug; but he has undeniably cheated. He is a beneficiary of performance-enhancing officiating. Varnado has been blocking shots at an incredible pace for his whole career, and by the end of the year his block total will surely pass Wojciech Myrda’s record of 535. But his accomplishment can easily be attributed to illegal enhancement, and for that he deserves the asterisk. The man pulls more jersey than a Tennessee Pride Squad girl and gets away with it.
On Tuesday night, I made sure to count how many fouls were missed and how many were called. The hyper-elongated Bulldog ended up fouling out (miraculously) and signaled the beginning of the end for the MSU squad, but I counted at least two major arms hooks on Daniel Orton and as many as three body contact fouls that should have been called. That kind of ineptitude by the referees can only be explained by drugs, and without their assistance Varnado would have been fouling out in half the time, thereby negating any chance he should have had at breaking the block record. But the dim lights of Humphrey Stadium have been kind to Jarvis, and he will inevitably break the record. But we do not have to stand for this; we can fight back.
Start petitions to put an asterisk on his record, and we will let future generations know that performance enhancers of any kind will not be tolerated, whether it’s taking steroids or pumping crack into the ventilation system of the referee changing rooms.
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