public schools ping
In the small town I live in, football is the ONLY thing that matters to many of the people (not me). Many of the hirings in the school are former football players, the coach at one point made more money than the superintendent (the coach also has a car from the school that he uses for personal use, and a credit card for gas), and the football program pretty much has carte blanche with their budget, while the district teeters on the verge of bankruptcy.
In our school, if a football player had discipline problems, the main factor on how it would be handled would be his value to the team. If he was a star, it would be swept under the carpet. If he was a bench warmer, he would be considered more expendable. The whole situation is sickening.