Renardo Sidney has had a stigma attached to him since he was a high school baller in Los Angeles. There was a lot of speculation that he had received improper benefits while moving around to different high schools to play. So much speculation that the NCAA suspended Sidney for his entire freshman year and so much controversy that home town UCLA and USC went back on their scholarship offers for the talented athlete. That alone was a red flag and everyone in the NCAA saw it that way.
Everyone except for Mississippi State.
They took a chance on Sidney and after his 18 month absence he was finally back in the lineup for the Bulldogs. That, however, only lasted one game. Sidney was suspended for a game for an altercation with a teammate during practice and was unable to play in the Diamond Head Classic opener on Wednesday. Unable to play, Sidney was still in attendance on Thursday night for the nationally televised game of the classic between Hawaii and Utah.
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Apparently the beef wasn’t squashed during practice and there was still some unfinished business. TV cameras caught Sidney and fellow teammate Elgin Bailey exchanging blows in the stands before the game. They didn’t catch the beginning of the fight, so it is hard to tell who started it. However, Mississippi State took swift action and suspended both players indefinitely.
With both big men out indefinitely the future looks bleak for the Bulldogs and playing in the SEC isn’t helping the situation. Bailey is a team captain with no prior incidents like this one while Sidney has a rap sheet longer than Pacman Jones. Bailey should be suspended 10 games at most while Mississippi State should cut its losses and dismiss Renardo Sidney from the team. It is obvious this is a troubled young man and although he has copious amounts of talent, the good just doesn’t outweigh the bad. In the long run, although not in the wins column, dismissing Sidney will grow the team and program by leaps and bounds.
