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Jack Nicklaus' grandson suspended, football team won't play without him

Sep 9, 2010, 11:00 AM EST

22 Comments

Nick O’Leary, grandson of golf great Jack Nicklaus and one of the nation’s top college prospects at tight end, has been suspended for two games by the Florida High School Athletic Association for hoisting up his middle finger to see who would salute it (see photo). It all happened during Dwyer (Fla.) High’s season-opener against Cleveland-Glenville (Ohio) on Monday, which was televised nationally by ESPN. After three disputed (re: horrible) calls in the final seconds denied Dwyer the game-winning score, O’Leary became frustrated while exiting the field and flipped off some people in the stands. Not amused by the suspension, Dwyer has chosen to forfeit the two games rather than play without O’Leary.

We think it’s a bunch of crap,” Dwyer coach Jack Daniels said. “There are no repercussions for the adults who made the calls on the field, but there is for an 18-year-old kid who reacted in the heat of the moment.

“You have a kid who has busted his butt since August. He played 140 snaps against Glenville, on both sides, punting and returning kicks. He was frustrated.”


The FHSAA, no doubt embarrassed that one of their high-profile athletes was seen giving the finger on national television, imposed the suspension when it learned that Dwyer didn’t suspend O’Leary on its own. One has to wonder if they would have been so prickly had the game not been on ESPN. Also, it seems to me that the horrid officiating is 10 times more embarrassing to the state than anything O’Leary did.
Be sure to check out the comments in the Palm Beach Post story for some real entertainment, by the way.
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FHSAA suspends Nick O’Leary for obscene gesture; Dwyer says it will forfeit rather than play without him [The Palm Beach Post]

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  1. Ed - Sep 9, 2010 at 2:46 PM

    It is not enough. The kid needs to learn a lesson that he can’t be a jerk any time he wants to. That is the problem now there is no correction with the young people and when they get to be adults it only gets worse. Learn the lesson you man and act like you got some smarts.

  2. hardjudge - Sep 9, 2010 at 3:54 PM

    Ed what century are you living in. What we need are officials with the intestinal fortitude (balls) to do what is right rather than make bad calls so the home team wins. Yeah he was wrong, coach should have made him run some laps, but 2 games, ridiculous.

  3. Zane - Sep 9, 2010 at 4:12 PM

    I agree with the Dwyer coach! Four grown men in stripes blew three crucial calls!! Why aren’t they suspended for two games! The FHSAA should be ashamed of themselves and their officials more than a 18 year old kid that played his heart out and got caught up in the heat of competetion. I’ve seen a lot worst displays from so-called adults! Those kids were robbed!

  4. ohioresident - Sep 9, 2010 at 4:23 PM

    Dwyer is obviously the winner of this game. Evidence is clearly in the replay. Not only did Dwyer score once, twice but three times! Wow! Wish there was something we could do to make this horrible situation better for the Dwyer team, coaches, families and fans. Many Ohioans send their apologies. Mixed feelings about the 2 game suspension. I’m sure O’Leary was not the only player, coach, and/or fan who had inappropriate things to say and/or who used inappropriate gestures. Pretty harsh penalty for a kid who pours his heart and soul into his sport. Can understand his level of frustration. Not to justify his actions – just trying to understand. The replay of this unfortunately will be looked at with more judging eyes than the replay of the 3 touchdowns taken away by incompetent referees.

  5. THOM - Sep 9, 2010 at 5:06 PM

    DONT YOU KNOW ALL SPORTS ARE FIXED.I SAY BOYCOTT AL SPORTS FOR A YEAR AND I BET THE PRICES AND THE SHITTY REFS WILL BE GONE.ITS TIME TO TAKE CONTROL OF SPORTS UNLIKE ARE COUNTRY.

  6. fla stripe - Sep 9, 2010 at 5:17 PM

    Looks like this game was in Ohio. That being the case these would not be FHSAA refs.

  7. Ben - Sep 9, 2010 at 6:27 PM

    Just makes me sick. These refs are HORRIBLE!!!!!!

  8. moon - Sep 9, 2010 at 11:59 PM

    Dwyer will rethink their position eventually. Poor decision by administrators not to suspend student athlete for profane gesture.

  9. Rick - Sep 10, 2010 at 5:16 AM

    This is a ball game. Yes, there should be a process to insure bad officiating is reviewed and corrected. That does not mean we should condone acts of this type by team members who are role models for our youth. This is why professional sports figures have had a detrimental impact on the youth of today. The coaches ALLOW these players to control too much of the game with their actions, dress and demeaner. In order to play there should be discipline and society does not expect that anymore.

  10. Dan - Sep 10, 2010 at 8:25 AM

    There are many people at fault here. Yes, Nick O’Leary deserves to be suspended because of the rules in place. The Ohio officials also need to step up and take responsibility for their obvious mistakes. Even Glenville High School needs to investigate who did the taunting and take action against those responsible on their end. I feel bad for a kid who leaves it all out on the field only to be provoked and victimized by the folks in Ohio. The State of Ohio should be absolutely embarrassed and ashamed and some apology should be coming from both the school and the officials. I do not condone what Nick O’Leary did, but I do understand things that happen in the heat of the moment and I do believe he’s smart enough to learn a valuable lesson from this. By the way, I don’t think this incident helped Ohio State’s chances in recruiting him.

  11. Skids - Sep 10, 2010 at 8:56 AM

    Bad refs or not, you can’t act like an unsportsmanlike jerk, even if you are a Nicklaus. And for the coach to forfeit 2 games for this, he should be fired.

  12. faith - Sep 10, 2010 at 10:03 AM

    If he wasn’t Jack Nicklaus grandson everyone would think that this was worry. God forbid if it was a black young man he would have been nail to the cross and call a thug. But because he is who he is he is not a thug. He was wrong and he should be punish for his bad attitude. But he want because he is white and rich.

  13. jb - Sep 10, 2010 at 10:08 AM

    be fair, suspend refs for incompetence, that is much worse than the finger. I am more offended by adult bad decisions than the finger by a high school kid

  14. Matt - Sep 10, 2010 at 11:29 AM

    It’s not about offending anyone, it’s about displaying poor behavior. It’s easy to act correctly when you win — it’s how you act in the face of adversity that defines ones character. Let’s face it, the kid was wrong. 2nd story — the last time I recall officiating that one-sided had to be the USA v. USSR basketball fiasco in 1972 … and yes, I know how melodramatic that sounds, but it really was that bad.

  15. Paul in KY - Sep 10, 2010 at 12:52 PM

    I don’t see how they didn’t call that final QB sneak a touchdown?!
    Looks like Dwyer was robbed.
    The young man needs to take his punishment, though. I would never want the line judges and/or referees working my games (unless I’m Glenville, I guess).

  16. RonGoss - Sep 10, 2010 at 3:55 PM

    Hey regardless of whether or not the officiating was good or bad, that young man doesn’t have the right to flip off the crowd. Sounds like to me that he was raised to believe that he is owed something and can do what he wants when he wants. I say suspend him the rest of the season. What happens the next time or in college. Make an example out of him. If I was the coach, he would not be still on the team.

  17. ADK - Sep 10, 2010 at 4:28 PM

    Where’s the self-discipline??

  18. jb - Sep 10, 2010 at 6:40 PM

    be fair, suspend refs for incompetence, that is much worse than the finger. I am more offended by adult bad decisions than the finger by a high school kid

  19. chiefagc - Sep 10, 2010 at 7:46 PM

    “act like you got some smarts”- like you?
    The fact that Dwyer chose to forfeit 23 games rather than play without him tells me the officials are the ones who should be suspended.

  20. chiefagc - Sep 10, 2010 at 7:51 PM

    Well thank God an ignorant person like you is not the coach.
    I’m giving you the finger right now.

  21. HuskerRed - Sep 12, 2010 at 7:01 PM

    Most are missing the bigger point. It doesn’t matter who the kid is or who he is related to, or who’s fault it is. This kind of behavior has no place in sports, at any level, this type of behavior, and worse, has been getting worse for years. It starts at home, then grade school, and so on. The parents, teachers, coaches have to teach discipline and respect. The kid needs to be punished. 30 years ago when I was in school, had I done this, I would have had my head slapped by the coach and my ass kicked by my father when I got home. Don’t blame the refs and laugh this under the table. Acting like a jerk shouldn’t be tolerated. If the refs messed up, they should be suspended then also. Send a message, but send the correct one. Just watch college football and the NFL to see how the players act and react. I’m not saying all are jerks, but there is a lot of immaturity. It needs to stop,

  22. Concerned - Sep 13, 2010 at 1:52 PM

    DONT YOU KNOW ALL SPORTS ARE FIXED.I SAY BOYCOTT AL SPORTS FOR A YEAR AND I BET THE PRICES AND THE SHITTY REFS WILL BE GONE.ITS TIME TO TAKE CONTROL OF SPORTS UNLIKE ARE COUNTRY.
    =================================
    Uh THOM…first, it is “all” sports, not ‘al’ sports and second, it is ‘our’ country, not ‘are’ country.
    Perhaps you need to be concerned about a few other things in your life, rather than taking shots at what direction you believe the Country is headed. What da ya say?

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