Larry Brown Sports

A 12-year-old student was reprimanded for wearing a “Ball So Hard University” sweatshirt to school, Bel Air Patch reports. The “Ball So Hard University” phrase was popularized by Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs, who on Sunday Night Football introductions said his alma mater was “Ball So Hard University.” His statement was a joke (and reference to a Jay-Z and Kanye West song), and it immediately became a trending topic on Twitter.

The 7th grader who wore the sweatshirt to school was confronted by an assistant principal at his Southampton Middle School and told to either take it off or turn it inside out. The school told the boy’s father that the shirt sent a mixed message and that the phrase had been banned.

The decision left the boy and his father confused considering the sweatshirt said “Ravens Nation” and had Ravens symbols on it. It was clearly an article of clothing supporting the team, not one suggesting bad language.

“I understand banning clothing that promotes violence or drugs or foul language, I get that,” the boy’s father said, “But a sweatshirt that is clearly promoting our team that everyone is excited about having in the playoffs is absolutely appropriate.”

The school has reversed its decision and decided that the sweatshirt is no longer a problem.

I really have to wonder how someone gets in trouble for wearing a sweatshirt like that, but a kindergartner can wear a t-shirt like this without pause.

Thanks to Deadspin for sharing the story.

Almost four years ago, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy went on one of the most famous rants in college football history.  Most of us thought the meltdown was absolutely hilarious.  Others wondered if Gundy was putting on a show to try and impress his players.  As a result, there was some uncertainty concerning whether or not the passion he showed was genuine.  A recent lawsuit should put any such debate to rest.

According to the Tulsa World via Dr. Saturday, a contractor named Brent Loveland is suing the Oklahoma state coach for $40,000 in damages and lost wages after Gundy fired him his first day on the job.  The fun part: Gundy fired Loveland for wearing an Oklahoma University shirt into his home.

The lawsuit claims that on the day Loveland was scheduled to begin an $80,600 trim project, Gundy approached him and said, “How dare you come into my house and offend my wife?”  Loveland then asked what Gundy was talking about, to which he responded, “That (expletive) shirt you have on.”

While Loveland claims it was dark that morning when he got dressed and he did not realize what he had put on, you have to wonder who is the bigger idiot in this situation.  Loveland was asking for trouble by wearing the shirt into the fiery Oklahoma State coach’s home, but how can Gundy’s lawyer possibly defend him against the lawsuit.  My knowledge of law is minimal, but I would have to assume wearing an Oklahoma shirt is not grounds for termination.  Do you think Gundy yelled, “Come after me!” as Loveland was walking out? My money says he did.

Liverpool is on tour in Malaysia and faced the Malaysian national team Saturday. Before their game, they had a training session on Thursday that brought a contentious moment in the stands. One brave soldier decided to wear his Manchester United Wayne Rooney jersey to the training session, and that didn’t sit well with the Liverpool fans. Check out this great video via EPL Talk:

The brazen youngster in question never donned a Liverpool jersey, but he eventually switched into a Malaysia shirt. Much like this dufus he learned the hard way not to wear the wrong jersey around Liverpool fans.

Soccer fans, hardcore.

Video Credit: YouTube user lioedexing

There’s being a fan and then there’s being a fan.  Losing your job in one of the worst economies in American history because you’re committed to a football team?  Now that’s a real fan — or one of the most stubborn in the U.S. depending on your outlook.

John Stone, a 34-year-old car salesman who had worked at Webb Chevrolet in the Chicago area, was fired on Monday because he showed up for work wearing a Green Bay Packers tie and refused to remove it.  Stone told the Chicago Sun-Times that his boss, Jerry Roberts, told him he had two choices — take the tie off or lose his job.  When Stone chose the latter after five warnings, Roberts told him he was fired.

Wearing the tie may seem harmless to the outside viewer, but Roberts claims it could present serious problems and “make it harder to sell cars in what’s already a competitive environment.”  Roberts also said his dealership has deals with the Bears for advertising and some Chicago players even drive loaners from Webb Chevrolet.

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This is such a tough debate to call. Who was the bigger jerk in Cleveland on Wednesday night? Matt Bellamy, the young kid who wore the LeBron James Heat jersey to the Indians/Yankees game in Cleveland, or the fans who harassed him with verbal expletives? In many senses, the guy was baiting the fans on purpose and knew what he was in for. In others, shouldn’t we still treat each other civilly regardless of which team we support?

At the very least you have to say it was wrong to throw the guy out of the stadium. That’s how over 70% of people felt in a poll conducted by Jimmy Traina in his Hot Clicks section at SI’s Extra Mustard. Hey, Bellamy may have been asking for some heckling and went against his girlfriend’s advice, but did he deserve to be thrown out of the stadium? No way. Now if you want to see the reaction from the Cleveland faithful, prepare to put on some earmuffs. This video of the fan wearing a LeBron Heat jersey to the Indians game has some language that is NSFW:

Sources:
Fan Ejected for Wearing LeBron Heat Jersey [Hot Clicks]
Video Credit: YouTube user jb107502

Last year in the playoffs, a Rockets fan got sent home from school for sporting a Ron Artest haircut. That seems to be a regular occurrence because the same thing happened to a Bengals fan a few months ago. Something about sports seems to bring out the passion in people … and the controversy. Take 17-year-old student Brandon Frost from Maurepas High School near Baton Rouge who says he was sent home for wearing a Colts jersey to school.

Each side predictably gave its version painting themselves in the best possible light. The school says that uniforms were relaxed to allow only black and gold colors on Friday as Saints fans were preparing for the Super Bowl. The kid says he was told “If you like Indiana so much, why don’t you go back?” by the school’s principal. Of course the father is to blame for giving his son permission to come home if he was hassled too much. Right — that’s the message you want to send a kid. Seems to me that the two wardrobe choices were the standard uniform or black and gold. If Frost didn’t want to wear Saints colors, why didn’t he just change into the normal uniform? Seems like an easy solution to me.

(the picture above is NOT Brandon Frost)

Well Angel Mata’s first mistake is cutting his hair like Ron Artest. The ‘do maybe was “hot” the first time around but now it’s getting a little out of hand because the fade is going too high on the sides. Anyway, when Charles Barkley says athletes aren’t role models, he might want to look at this story and think again. Where else would the kid get the idea from?

Angel Mata had the Houston Rockets logo shaved into his hair just like Rockets forward Ron Artest. But the haircut violates school policy and Angel has been told he can’t come back until the design is gone.

Angel’s father, Mike, said he is going to let his son keep the design until the Rockets are through playing. The Los Angeles Lakers have a 3-2 series lead in the NBA’s Western Conference semifinals.

Artest said he appreciated the support but wanted the kid to follow the school’s rules (which prevent designs in hair). While that’s the proper response I would expect to hear, to think that there’s a parent out there who would prefer to break the school’s rules and keep his kid from being in class is ridiculous. Even Ron freakin Artest knows better, and when he’s giving a good lesson in parenting, you know something’s wrong.

Photo Credit: Houston Chronicle