Within the seminal 1984 movie Footloose, Kevin Bacon’s character Ren delivers a stirring speech about the way it’s lastly the city’s time to bounce. In the event you’re West Virginia soccer coach Wealthy Rodriguez, nevertheless, the time to bounce is rarely.
In maybe one of many silliest examples of soccer guys being soccer guys, Rodriguez has banned his gamers from dancing on TikTok. Not from utilizing and even posting on TikTok, thoughts you. Simply dancing.
“They’ll be on it, so I am not banning them from it,” Rodriguez mentioned Monday, via ESPN. “I am simply banning them from dancing on it. It is like, look, we attempt to have a tough edge or no matter, and also you’re in there in your tights dancing on TikTok, ain’t fairly the picture of our program that I need.”
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Let’s simply put aside how foolish that is. (Very.) And the way it’s clearly primarily based round Rodriguez’s particular beliefs on what’s “robust” or “manly.” It is also in all probability dangerous for the workforce’s success in an period where college athletes get paid and transfer from universities as they see match. As a result of have you learnt which soccer gamers dance on TikTok? The perfect ones!
Travis Hunter, final 12 months’s Heisman Trophy winner — the celebrated award for the very best participant in faculty soccer — frequently dances on TikTok. Runner-up Ashton Jeanty? Ditto. Do you assume good gamers will need to play at a spot the place one thing so simple as dancing on TikTok is banned? Clearly, it is not the largest deal but it surely may be one thing that turns gamers off from this system — at the least the actually good ones who can play wherever.
Rodriguez is free to make guidelines as he sees match, and he mentioned as a lot to reporters. However he is again at West Virginia practically two decades after beforehand main the Mountaineers to a few of their greatest years. However banning TikTok dancing, of all issues, may be an indication that he is caught prior to now.
