Mike Hartline (Photo by David Perry)
They’re kids.
We forget that.
And when we forget that, they usually do something that reminds us that even though they try to act so grown-up, even though they claim they have it all “under control,” even though in some ways they act so mature, they usually throw in something very immature.
Mike Hartline did that Tuesday.
Demoted from his position as Kentucky’s starting quarterback on Monday, Hartline spoke to reporters for the first time after Tuesday’s practice and put the blame for his sudden second-string status at the feet of his teammates.
“It stinks,” he said. “No one ever expects to win the starting job and then lose it because guys around him aren’t performing the way they should. But it’s best for the team and I’m a team player, and that’s just the way it has to be.”
You don’t say that, of course. You don’t say it even if you think it. You don’t say even if it’s true, which in this case it is partially true. Fact is, Kentucky’s wide receivers have been a major disappointment at this point in the season. The best receiver, Dicky Lyons, is gone for the season with a knee injury. The remaining corp is young, inexperienced and rarely on the same page with the quarterback. There have been far too many instances of a receiver cutting off a route, and the ball sailing up field, and vice versa, this season.
But if Hartline believes the blame is all on the others in blue, he’s sadly mistaken. He’s made his fair share, too. Must he be reminded of his fumble at Alabama, the one the Tide scooped-and-scored for what turned out to be the difference in a 17-14 Alabama victory? Must the sophomore be reminded of passes thrown too high, too low, or behind the intended receiver. Yes, he’s been hurt by drops. But he’s also hurt his own cause by errant throws.
He hurt his cause Tuesday, too, no doubt. But here’s my take my Hartline: He wants it so badly, almost to a fault. Most of the summer, he was the first player in the Nutter Center and the last to leave. He was always organizing practices and pass skeletons, to the point where Dicky Lyons said on media day some players had to tell Hartline to back off. He’s like that in his media comments, trying so hard to be the leader, trying so hard to get the rest of the offense to play better, to get his teammates play better. Unfortunately, at times that has come off as the quarterback criticizing his teammates.
Tuesday was one of those times. But before you condemn Hartline too harshly, remember that he’s a kid. And kids make mistakes. They do the wrong things. They say the wrong things.
And here’s the thing about a leader, as Kentucky coach Rich Brooks said Monday: “The best way for anybody to show their leadership is to go out and play well and then act like it afterward.”
John Clay is a sports columnist for the Lexington Herald-Leader. A native of Central Kentucky and graduate of UK, he covered UK football for 13 seasons before being promoted to columnist in 2000. He lives in Lexington with his wife and two sons. You can e-mail him at jclay@herald-leader.com.
I agree that you can’t be too hard on a sophomore in college, but he needs to think about what he is saying. He said he has been the victim of dropped passes, but those are the same dropped passes that Randall Cobb has to deal with, and he’s finding a way to move the ball. Also, Hartline seemingly had a significant advantage over Randall Cobb — Randall Cobb. Cobb doesn’t have the best receiver left on the team to throw to because he is that best receiver. So Cobb has done more with less than Hartline had at his disposal. It’s hard to see how Hartline truly believes he should be the starting quarterback when you take that fact in consideration. I feel for the guy — a public benching is tough for anyone to deal with — but he has to know that HE has not gotten the job done.