Rivalries and Redemption

~This post is about how the rivalry game between Utah and BYU has gotten out of hand and how impressed I was with how BYU linebacker, Spencer Hadley, handled his suspension. It also discusses how redemption can come to all through the atonement of the Savior.~

This past weekend, my Utes beat the Cougars for the 4th straight time in one of the most heated rivalries in the nation.  As much as I love this rivalry game because of the innocent jabbing that goes on across the aisles at church, I hate it because of the cruel and sometimes despicable things fans can do. This rivalry has brought out the absolute worst in some people, especially this year. There are things on both sides of the rivalry that I'm ashamed happened. I was disgusted as I saw BYU fans throwing garbage at the refs as they walked out of the stadium. No matter the outcome of the game... IT'S JUST A GAME! There is no reason to treat people with such indecency. As much as I was disappointed with the BYU fans throwing garbage, I'm even more disappointed in the fan that sent in the email of BYU linebacker Spencer Hadley partying in Vegas. Some might call this impeccable timing, but I would disagree. I believe that a fan went too far in trying to get one of BYU's best defensive players suspended to give the Utes an edge. In all honesty, I'm glad this rivalry is ending for a few years. Hopefully fans on both side can see how far they've taken their behavior and take it down a couple of notches.

Coming from a Utah fan and someone who definitely dislikes BYU, allow me to spend a few minutes of how impressed I was to hear what Spencer Hadley and Bronco Mendenhall did after his suspension. First off, I don't think BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall is a very good football coach. With him at the helm, BYU will never be an elite team. In all honesty though, I don't think he was meant to be an elite football coach with an elite football team. He was meant to teach these young men who enter the program what it means to be men of the priesthood and exit the program men of God. The sports program at BYU was meant to be a missionary program, not necessarily win national championships.

Courtesy of the Hadley Family via sportsillustrated.cnn.com

According to a Sports Illustrated article, some amazing things happened behind the scenes before the Utah/BYU game last Saturday. I've attached the article to this post and won't go into many details (see below for link to the full article). I was thoroughly impressed, however, with what the football team decided to do the night before the rivalry game. Instead of making last minute preparations for the game, they decided to go visit the inmates at the local prison. Spencer Hadley didn't want to go but finally ended up on the bus, headed towards point of the mountain. "I wasn't sure I wanted to be around the team," Hadley said. "I felt the shame of what had happened." While at the prison, Bronco was the keynote speaker and, upon finishing his remarks and making his way back to his seat, the inmates wanted to hear from Hadley. They obviously weren't oblivious to what had happened and wanted to hear what had happened. I'm so impressed with the courage demonstrated by Hadley and what he did next. Instead of wallowing in his own despair, he got up and spoke to the group. He said the following:

"I've done some things that have embarrassed my family, my teammates, my school, and even my church, but I believe in redemption.

"I know who I am. I know who you are. We're all children of a Heavenly Father. All of us in this room have made mistakes. Not one of us qualifies as being the most vilest of sinners. Yet having made mistakes I know that we can change and we can come back and right the wrongs that we've done."

I'll now quote directly from the author of the article as his writing beautifully descibes what happened next:

"One inmate rose to his feet and started clapping. A second inmate joined him. A third stood up. Soon every inmate was on his feet, shouting and clapping.

"Mendenhall stood and wrapped his arms around Hadley, who buried his face in his coach's shoulder and wept like a baby. "I'm proud of you," Mendenhall whispered. "The first step on the road to redemption is to use our mistakes to bless others. And that's what you did tonight."

As much as I'm not impressed with Bronco as a football coach, I'm thoroughly impressed with the care he takes to mold his players into men of God. Not one of us is perfect and we are all in need of redemption through the atonement of Jesus Christ. I'm glad that life at BYU is not all about football and, even though the fans can forget who they are, Bronco is constantly reminding his team who they really are and what they are about.

It just so happens that today, before reading this Sports Illustrated article, I was listening to the previous General Conference and came across Elder D Todd Christofferson's talk entitled Redemption. In his talk, Elder Christofferson reminds us of our duty to help in this redemptive work.

"This kind of redemptive work means helping people with their problems. It means befriending the poor and the weak, alleviating suffering, righting wrongs, defending truth, strengthening the rising generation, and achieving security and happiness at home. Much of our redemptive work on earth is to help others grow and achieve their just hopes and aspirations."

 Those who know me will understand how much of a Utah Utes fan I am and that will never change; however, today I've become a Hadley and Bronco fan for joining in this redemptive work by "helping people with their problems." Life isn't all about football and, for many of these players, football will come and go and be but a small moment of their lives. While football is fun, it is very limited. Redemption through the atonement of Jesus Christ is eternal and I'm pleased these football players are learning how to use the atonement to better themselves eternally.

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/college-football/news/20130925/spencer-hadley-byu/#ixzz2fwQ5kMdi