Missouri College Shooters and Coaches...Stepped out of Line

[Ed Ely]

Lindenwood Univeristy in St. Charles, Missouri had every reason to celebrate following their unprecedented fifth-straight win in the 2008 Intercollegiate Clay Target Championships in San Antonio, Texas. But that celebration apparently got out of hand, and now Lindenwood officials are looking at whether the program will even exist next year or not.

According to reports, the team was a little over indulgent in their celebrations on the team bus when returning to St. Charles from San Antonio. As a result, one of their shooters, Travis Mears, apparently fell asleep at the wheel, crashing his car into a house on his way.

The accident resulted in Mears being charged with a DWI. But the ripple effect has turned into a tsunami, with coaches Joe Steenbergen and Don Rayfield having been fired and the entire team suspended –indefinitely.

Lindenwood, a private university, has been seen as one of the poster-programs for collegiate and youth shooting programs, winning five straight national championships since their beginning in 2002. Today, the sporting clay world is buzzing with the questions that are inevitable after such a stupid incident – and a drastic response from university officials.

The question about the program’s continuation brings serious doubts to the world-class facility that was apparently in the works for Lindenwood. final approval and groundbreaking for two International bunkers, International and American skeet, 5 stand and ATA trap facilities was in the works to complete a multi-million dollar facility that was expected to host National and World collegiate events into the future.

Sources tell the Shooting Wire that the Lindenwood incident is having an impact that’s being felt as far away as Stamford, Connecticut. Recently, ESPN taped material for a special on collegiate shooting – with former Great Outdoor Games winner and Lindenwood Shooter –you guessed it – Travis Mears playing a significant part. Now, it’s back to the edit room where ESPN’s new shooting analyst Shari LeGate and her producers face the reconstruction job every producer dreads.

FYI

Ed

[XD 9 Loaded Sub-Compact]

Sounds like the athletic department is looking for an excuse to direct funds to more "popular" sports. DWI's are a common occurrence among football, basketball and baseball players despite "zero tolerance" of any drugs or alcohol and you don't hear any outcry or backlash against them. There is always a big cover up, I went to a smaller private christian college where if you even talked about having a drink you were sure to go to hell, yet when the athletes wanted to live it up everyone looked the other way.

[yocan]

Originally Posted by XD 9 Loaded Sub-Compact

Sounds like the athletic department is looking for an excuse to direct funds to more "popular" sports. DWI's are a common occurrence among football, basketball and baseball players despite "zero tolerance" of any drugs or alcohol and you don't hear any outcry or backlash against them. There is always a big cover up, I went to a smaller private christian college where if you even talked about having a drink you were sure to go to hell, yet when the athletes wanted to live it up everyone looked the other way.

+1 being the third best swim team in the country, those that drank (I don't drink at all) had to hide it. The football team is going to bars, getting arrested, pulling switchblades in barfights....did I mention their record is 3-9 and they don't draw a crowd to the stands. Its just for the future, the school knows it NEEDS a football program, they don't seem to be trying to CREATE a football program though.... sad...

[MadBadger]

My alma mater, ladies and gentlemen. Go Lions.

[Eric_Schwendemann]

My buddie is going to lindenwood on a shooting scholarship so they better not cancel the program just because of someone else being an R-Tard. I just helped patch a tire for one of the coaches that was fired, nice guy.