Whatever happens to Loren Wade is entirely his responsibility.
The often-troubled ASU running back has no one else to blame for the shooting that left a former ASU football player dead at a Scottsdale nightclub over the weekend (see story, Page 1).
Some will consider this tragedy a black eye for ASU and the athletic department. The calls for a stringent counseling system and strict punishment for rules violations will ring out for weeks.
We expect ASU officials to issue the standard responses. They will say all the right things and do their best to keep the University's image as clean as possible.
But this shooting's impact will inevitably extend beyond Wade's personal life. ASU will be mentioned alongside the word "murder" for weeks. His actions will overshadow any other news events.
There have already been grumblings of how the negative publicity will affect recruiting.
In the face of this tragedy, it's unfortunate that the focus has so quickly been shifted away from the heart of the issue.
ASU and the athletic department should not be considered factors in this situation. It is only by proximity that Wade and ASU are mentioned in headlines across the country.
Wade played football and attended classes at ASU. Nothing more. The University was not responsible for his upbringing, his character or his off-field actions.
Some will fault head coach Dirk Koetter for giving Wade a second chance. In the fall, the athletic department opened an internal investigation regarding Wade's involvement in receiving illegal benefits from a former department employee.
With the investigation's results still pending, Koetter decided to give Wade a second chance, and the team attempted to get the running back reinstated.
We don't fault Koetter. The coach wasn't handing a troubled player a starting job on a silver platter. He was trying to help a troubled young man get back on his feet.
Koetter should also be praised for halting practice Saturday as soon as he found out about the incident. He wanted to be the person to tell his players what happened.
The problem begins and ends with Wade. His career at ASU was some up and mostly down, but his off-field actions spoke volumes for his character.
As a representative of the University and the athletic department, he failed.
While we believe ASU should do the right thing and encourage counseling programs and strict rule enforcement, we don't think this shooting should be held as an example of a shady department.
We don't consider Wade's actions a "black eye" for ASU. The University community should mourn this tragedy, but they should not be the ones to pay for Wade's actions.
