Police have cited Tennessee Titans quarterback Vince Young for an incident that occurred at a strip club in Dallas. Apparently, Young's alma mater, The University of Texas, was being disrespected by a patron who held the "hook 'em horns" hand sign upside down at Young. Creiton Kinchen, 45, was seen on video to be exchanging words with Young at 3:30 a.m., which led to Young allegedly assaulting Kinchen.

"There was a conversation going on between Mr. Young and several people inside the office," said Dallas police Lt. Craig Miller. "One of the [club employees] makes a gesture contradictory to the University of Texas, the 'Hook 'em' sign upside down. This obviously made Mr. Young upset."
Kinchen suffered a cut lip, apparently designed to match Vince Young's bruised ego. Young was arrested and faces a $500 fine on a Class C misdemeanor. He is entering his fifth season for the Tennessee Titans, where he is nearing the end of a five-year, $58-million dollar deal signed in 2006.

Titans coach Jeff Fisher had this to say:

"Members of the organization have been in touch with Vince," Fisher said. "At this point, we're just gathering facts. I have nothing else to say about it. I can't speculate, can't go into detail. We're just gathering facts. I'm sure we will have a lot more information over the next few days."

By the time the police arrived to the strip club at 4 a.m., Young was gone. The surveillance video, which has no audio, captured Young in the back office speaking to management about how he planned to spend his night at the club. He was leaving the office, and then returned to confront Kinchen.

This is not the first time that Vince Young has drawn media attention for odd behavior. In 2008, police were called after Young reportedly mentioned committing suicide and left his home with a gun. His current charge may violate the NFL's personal-conduct policy, which was strengthened by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in April 2007. Since that time, Goodell has suspended six players a total of seven times for off-the-field infractions.

I've always worried about Vince Young, not as a player, but as a human being. I began to worry when I saw him on the cover of ESPN The Magazine several years ago. On the cover was the quote, "I was born to play quarterback for the University of Texas." At that point, I worried if this young man had attached too much of his identity to athletic achievement, and I always feared what might happen if he ever lost his reason for existing. When I heard that Vince was suicidal as a result of problems on the field, I was saddened, but not surprised.

Vince Young, if he is not careful, may end up making the same mistake made by millions of young black men across America. He may end up truly believing that if he is a great athlete, he can engage in any kind of behavior off the field that he chooses, with very little consequence. The last thing the NFL can use right now is another media report of an athlete getting in to a fight at a strip club.

Many athletes find themselves humbled, when the NFL commissioner steps in and makes them pay a price for their activity. Some athletes believe that being a superstar means they can be more careless with their choices, but the opposite is actually true. If I am protecting a $58-million dollar contract, you wouldn't see me drinking in public, going to strip clubs or hanging around people who have nothing to lose.

What's worse is that if others are aware that they can rattle an athlete with nasty words and get him to take a punch, the athlete will become the target of every thug in America wanting to get rich from a lawsuit. I wish Vince Young the best, and I am hopeful that he learns that a multi-million dollar brand that engages in irresponsible behavior soon finds himself on the sidelines. He's worked too hard to throw it all away.


Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and the Athlete Liberation and Academic Reform Movement (ALARM). To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.