Scan police blotters.
Baseball players get into big trouble, so too basketball leapers and hockey smashers.
Rap sheets for college athletes, sadly, are not rare. But it's the NFL that seems to generate the biggest, nastiest cases. It can be sweet banter to suggest who might become the next Walter Payton, Joe Montana or Lee Roy Selmon, but we wince at wondering who could be the next Rae Carruth, Ray Lewis or Lawrence Taylor. A blending of youth, ego, money, fame, alcohol, testosterone, drugs and arrogance are no less dangerous than striking matches while pumping gasoline. Sports franchises hire cops, snoops and psychologists, but keeping full rosters of athletes out of trouble is a challenge that seems most effectively calmed through upgrading character, recognizing pitfalls, enhancing peer pressure and adding a touch of fear.