Auburn Basketball Players Engaged In Mid-Flight “Horseplay” So Bad That The Team Had To Turn The Plane Around

Houston, we have a problem! No wait, we’re talking about Auburn on their way to play against the Houston Cougars. And this isn’t aerospace, but it is aviation. Can't say I've ever heard of anything like this before. When it comes to flying any number of feet above the ground, you can’t exactly act a fool, roughhouse, tussle, whatever you want to call it. If you know anything about Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl, he's not going to tolerate any BS. He loves his players and will passionately have their back to the ends of the Earth. But make no mistake, Pearl will hold you to a high standard. His latest 11th-ranked Tigers squad found that out the hard way on Friday, when their plane was grounded after players were engaging in "horseplay that could have escalated into a fight." This according to longtime basketball insider Jeff Goodman. https://twitter.com/goodmanhoops/status/1855040394746089947 https://twitter.com/GoodmanHoops/status/1855048989722239182 More details here from local boots on the ground, as Air Traffic Control got involved and had reason to be very concerned. https://twitter.com/WBRC6Hardison/status/1855075946493063506 In defense of these nearly-tusslin’ Tigers, they may have been too young or working too hard toward their scholarships to learn their lesson. If any single one of the viral videos about idiots doing dumb crap aboard planes or at airports wasn't enough to dissuade them, surely they're ignorant about the infamous Russell Wilson Plane Story. Among the many dummies on airplanes, that one sticks out in my mind as a severe deterrent re: any untoward mid-flight behavior. Somebody apparently got hold of the flight log, and a message from somebody else in the know about the incident as it unfolded. https://twitter.com/MyTakes101/status/1855011877535072400 Mr. Unlimited is having himself a nice redemptive run with the Steelers right now, but when he got that big payday from the Broncos, his idea of "leadership" and "setting the tone" — my characterization, not Russ' words — was to do high knees in the aisle of an international flight. Teammates were trying to sleep. You know, jet lag is a thing. Apparently not for someone who, to reiterate and clarify the moniker from before, calls himself Mr. Unlimited. The Broncos actually won that game against the Jaguars, but that wasn't the point. The point? Well for that reason and a variety of others, Denver paid Russ an unprecedented amount of money — we're talking several times over — not to play for them. Now that I think of it, maybe it was Russ' plan all along to con the team. He could be that much of a mad genius. I kid, I kid. Bottom line: You want to find the quickest way to piss people off? Act like a moron on a plane to where it's so bad that, 45 minutes into a flight, they turn the big bird around back to where it came from. Quick interlude for a couple wrestling-related memes that made me chuckle, in lieu of an actual fight video of what happened on that plane. We need to lighten things up a bit here. https://twitter.com/NickyPerkss/status/1855027476537184716 https://twitter.com/FQKentucky/status/1855031783789625524 There’s a saying I’ve heard a lot as an adult. About how you should, if possible, take a big trip with your romantic partner. It’s meant to test how they handle travel-related adversity, where people are often at their worst and most impatient. I think it’s dope to travel. I love going to airports. The last thing I’d want to do is screw something up, especially if I were with a partner. Never mind doing something totally moronic that would sabotage a Division I college athletic team I was a member of. Just think about how dumb these young men feel. Congrats, gents! You're lucky you can get on a different flight and didn't just cost your team a freaking game! It’s not like the Tigers have a bunch of wins to throw away. Everything’s going to matter once the season gets down toward the end. Auburn could use a stellar result in the NCAA Tournament when March's Big Dance rolls around, having only advanced past the Round of 32 once since Pearl took over in 2014. Has he really been there that long already? Sheesh. I'm getting old AF. Come on, college kids! Be better! They'll live and learn from this. Hell, it might even bring the team closer together. Time will tell as always. Good news is, the highly anticipated showdown in Houston with the No. 4 Cougars should proceed as scheduled on Saturday night.