Education.
In the wake of Jacob Blake’s shooting, Gators’ head coach Dan Mullen repeatedly harped on the importance for individuals to educate themselves to gain a well-rounded perspective on the issues that run rampant across society.
“I get frustrated with myself when I get ignorant about things,” Mullen said from his lectern over a Zoom media session that has become all-too common in the COVID-19 era. “And I’m like, ‘Why would I not process this, and think about it in a different manner?’.”
In a season of uncertainty, Mullen wants to be certain he’s well-educated.
On Sunday evening, Kenosha, WI, officer Rusten Sheskey shot Blake in the back several times, with four bullets hitting the 29-year-old, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. The officers were responding to a 911 complaint that Blake was not supposed to be at the complainant’s premises, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation. When officers arrived, they attempted to arrest Blake and used a Taser to try to stop him, the DCI said. Blake walked around to the driver’s side door of his SUV, and as he opened the door and leaned forward, Shesky shot at Blake. The shooting is now under the investigation of the Wisconsin Department of Justice, and the U.S. Justice Department announced it had opened a federal civil rights inquiry into the shooting.
Mullen said he spoke to his team about what happened Sunday evening, and that it’s not the first time such a subject has come up in team conversations. He preached the importance of respect and understanding in the locker room.
“The best way to respect somebody is to try to educate yourself about them, and if you do that, you have a chance of spreading a positive message,” Mullen said.
Several leagues’ athletes boycotted games in an effort to use their platform to implement change, including USF and Boston College, whose football teams suspended practice to join the nationwide conversation on race. At UF, Mullen and the team spoke about doing the same, but ended with the conclusion that operations will continue.
“Our guys love football,” he said. “They want to play football.”
But Mullen emphasized the importance for his players to use their platforms to their advantage.
“I think they're very conscious about using the platform that they have to do it,” he said. “We had a great discussion about it after practice ... We've had some in the past, we had some today. We need to have more. We've got to find even better ways to do it, have good discussions within our team on things moving forward.”
Earlier today, Gators’ defensive lineman Zachary Carter and wide receiver Trevon Grimes used Twitter to offer their perspectives on the matter
Incumbent starting quarterback Kyle Trask retweeted Cincinnati Bengals’ rookie quarterback Joe Burrow’s tweet which read, “How can you hear the pain Black people are going through and dismiss it as nothing. How can you hear the pain and respond with anything other than “I stand with you.”
As the Black Lives Matter movement gained momentum in the last several months following the death of George Floyd at the knee of Minneappolis police officer Derek Chauvin, Mullen said he too has educated himself in the little things.
“Of course all lives matter, but that’s not what we’re talking about here,” he said. “We’re talking about this specific situation where we’re seeing racial injustice has happened and we’re trying to draw light to that. We’re not saying other things aren’t important, we’re trying to draw light to this.”
As Mullen continues on his mission of self-education, he encourages others to do so as well andwants focus to not detract from what matters. More importantly, he wants people, like himself, to have an open mind, as that’s the only way he believes people can be open to change.
“I look back, and I’ve changed my opinions on a lot of things,” he said. “The smart thing to do is educate yourself and make sure your opinion is well thought of.”
Head coach Dan Mullen on the sidelines at Florida-Georgia last year. In today's presser, Mullen stressed the importance of self-education.
