Quit whining about LSU’s new locker room

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A wise, wise man in my community once told me to lower my expectations in order to be successful.

He told me that instead of trying to please everyone, true success is found in pleasing 80 percent of the people 100 percent of the time.

His logic seemed flawed to me at the time, but now as I’ve gotten older, I get it and see the picture clearer than ever.

The reason why this adage is true is because no matter what happens in the world, there will never be a consensus to anything. In today’s social media society, there is too much of a passion for dissenting for people to ever unanimously agree.

So instead of trying to please those people, just let them bark and crow — they’re going to regardless.

Instead, do right by the loyal 80 percent who know what the heck is going on.

Never has this old adage proven more true than in the past 24 hours with this debate surrounding the LSU football locker room.

For those who didn’t see, the Tigers unveiled a new, state-of-the-art football locker room yesterday — a locker room that puts LSU among the leaders in college football facilities. Some have even said that the facility is even better than those in the pros.

Most of the feedback surrounding the locker room was positive. LSU’s tweets showcasing the photos got thousands of likes, retweets and shares.

But now that the dust has sort of settled on that initial wave of joy, there’s a growing minority — that ugly 20 percent — that’s beginning to bicker and crow.

“Why didn’t the university spend that money on academics, instead?”

“Why is this facility needed?”

Well, let me pick apart those arguments one by one so that we can expose how uninformed they are for everyone to see.

One at a time. First, “Why didn’t the university spend that money on academics?”

Well, the University didn’t spend a penny on anything involving any of this. That locker room was funded by private donations from LSU’s boosters via the Tiger Athletic Foundation.

Can we question the ethical mindset of a millionaire to give money to a football team before building a library? Maybe so. But how is that the football team’s fault? The next time an athletic program turns down money will be the first time. Kudos to LSU for building a first-class facility. At least they’re giving back to their student-athletes and not just stuffing the pockets of their administrators like other programs do.

If wanting more on the academic side for LSU, let’s look at politics and leadership.

Point the finger at former Gov. Bobby Jindal and his inept policies, which gutted LSU (and other universities around the state) of their budgets. Point the finger at current academic leadership for not doing more to raise money and generate the interest that LSU athletics has in the state.

Heck, ask what the heck has been done with the $100 million the athletic department HAS GIVEN BACK to the university in the past decade. Where has that money gone?

Oh yeah, and blame yourself, too, while at it!

The truth is that everyone is to blame for this problem.

If all the naysayers complaining gave $5 to one of LSU’s many fundraisers, we wouldn’t have these problems.

It’s easy to complain, but it’s another thing entirely to put your money where your mouth is. LSU has loyal athletic support. They shouldn’t have to apologize for that. The academic deans should build those same connections and find some of their own.

Now, onto “Is this facility needed?”

Well, if you like when LSU wins on Saturday nights, then yes, it is.

College football is based on recruiting and recruiting is driven by things like this. Student-athletes pick their schools based on where they feel the best “vibe”, and having things like this create a culture — a winning culture for LSU and other programs.

Look, I get it.

Academics and education are vitally important.

I, myself, am an LSU graduate. I can speak first-hand to the deplorable condition of the university’s library and some of the other main buildings on campus.

But before you hop on that soap box and start chirping, educate yourself on where the football team is getting this money from and how much they’ve done for the university first.