Latrell Gibbs

[AppGrad78]

When Latrell enrolled at App, he signed up for an extremely rigorous Health Sciences major. He later changed his major to a less challenging curriculum, then thought better of it and changed his major back to Health Sciences. The two changes in major put him in a position in which he couldn't recover. This situation has absolutely nothing in common with Sean Price.

[ASU_MBA]

We can make excuses all day long, but he knew what was expected of him and he did not fulfill his obligation. He could have made an effort and enroll in summer session and he has not.

I wish him the best. But like Sean Price he is another talented kid that has for one reason or another wasted NFL level talent.

I hope he gets back on the field and gets the school thing figured out.

[JohnnyBurrito]

There's a good chance he can still get to the NFL if he's eligible to go the D2 route. It's perceivably harder but not out of the question.

[hapapp]

Do we actually know that a) he's not coming back to App, and if so, b) the reason is because he failed to get his grades in order?

Exactly. If he chooses not to return it doesn't have to be for nefarious reasons.

[ericsaid]

When Latrell enrolled at App, he signed up for an extremely rigorous Health Sciences major. He later changed his major to a less challenging curriculum, then thought better of it and changed his major back to Health Sciences. The two changes in major put him in a position in which he couldn't recover. This situation has absolutely nothing in common with Sean Price.

Having done this myself, and taken time to go the community college route as a result, it generally has nothing to do with someones intelligence or drive. I was recommended by a guidance counselor to take classes in the Spring semester that would catch me up to those in my major who were enrolled in the previous fall semester. The result was 10 hours in class a day, plus an additional 6 hours of homework, each day. Now for someone playing a sport requiring up to 20 hours (or however many it is) a week, I can only imagine the stress level.

I am now in Graduate school, despite my freshman year flub. I would imagine that a step back to view the entire picture will have helped Latrell. The fact is, no one commenting on the board has had direct contact with him to know his intentions and any speculation on what will happen, especially as it pertains to his character, is premature and misguided. (Other than Moose maybe)

[NoLongerLurking]

Do we actually know that a) he's not coming back to App, and if so, b) the reason is because he failed to get his grades in order?

I wouldn't be shocked to find that the highschool pipeline didn't properly represent his scholastic aptitude, and it caught up due to our beloved university not giving away grades.

[AtlAppMan]

Let me also clarify my statement, "Next Man up", because I want to assure everyone that was not meant as a knock on Gibbs. It is meant to reflect a tough reality of college athletics and a greater reflection of a tough world we live in. I genuinely hope the best for all of our student athletes. I am a perfect example of someone who didn't do as well in college as I could have and regret it often. I know I could have done better and I was not an athlete with the extra burden of practices and playing. Fortunately I started to figure it out after two years in college and did a whole lot better my last THREE years.

When we speak of athletes performing or not performing, the notion of some hot shot recruit may take a guy's spot, whether a guy has a spot, eligibility, etc. I always have mixed emotions. Some of these kids have given a lot to the school and program, obviously hoping to get something back but never the less, they made sacrifices and I appreciate that and want them to succeed. On the other hand, if some kid displaces an incumbent then it should normally be a really good thing because it means we have upgraded our team. Every kid knows that when playing sports the best players should be on the playing field. They know what they are in for when they start. So even though it is often tough to see a kid lose his starting job, overall the program benefits.