Why can't we be friends?

I actually caught sportscenter today...finally...and I saw that men's basketball players and football players at Kansas got into three fights in the last two days.

I know that not all athletes and coaches get along with athletes and coaches on other teams. Although to be fair, most athletes get along well with each other. I do know that my roommate freshman year didn't get along with one team and almost ended up getting into a fight one time.

This stuff happens, I doubt Kansas is the only place that it has happened. I think this is a dominance thing, to see who the big men on campus really are.

From my observations, in general most athletes do get along with each other. Sometimes they make friends and start conversations freshman year with other people that wear grey nike sweatpants. Athletes also get along with each other because they have unique lives compared to the rest of college students and can use each other as a support system. They also are more likely to know each other because they run into each other so much at meetings, functions, locker room areas, gyms etc.

It's a well known fact that certain programs at certain schools don't get along. When there are several big programs competing for attention and limited resources, fights and bitterness are bound to happen.

I wish they didn't happen. A school's athletic department should never be about one team, one athlete or one coach. Yes college programs need to make money and spend more on big ticket items like men's and women's basketball and football in order to have a good program. However, the goal should be to have all programs being highly successful and highly publicized. It shouldn't be about one program. Coaches should support other programs in their athletic department.

On top of that I think that men's and women's programs of the same sport should work together to promote their game to the community. They should work together to drive attendance up for each other.