Michael Vick

When Michail Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison for dog fighting, many, including myself, thought it might be the end of his football career, or at the least as the quarterback that we are accustomed to seeing. However after learning which prison he is assigned and his plans while there, I'm inclined to believe that he just might make it back to the National Football League.

Vick is assigned to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons minimum security facility in Leavenworth, Kansas. His attorney, Billy Martin said, "Mr. Vick hopes to participate in programs offered at that facility, including the Bureau of Prisons drug treatment program."

The residential drug treatment programs at Bureau of Prisons institutions take place in units set apart from the general prison population, lasting at least 500 hours over six to 12 months. And upon completion of the program, non-violent offenders may be granted up to one year of early release.

I would love to see Vick turn his life around for the better. I don't want to make excuses for him, but we are all products of our environment. (But for the grace of God, there go I). What I'm saying is that we place these great athletes on a pedestal, forgetting that they have only been exposed to a certain unfavorable environment, then we give them a bunch of money and expect them to change.

Many of these kids grow up in the inner city and get caught up in this sort of underground world, such as the "Dirty South" sub-culture, especially the stretch of I85 from Atlanta, Ga to Richmond, Va. And the closest thing to a father figure is their coach. And most coaches, from high school and up, have the same motto as the Raiders, "just win baby"; you're only here a couple of years anyway, then you're someone eles's problem.

That is why we miss coaches like Eddie Robinson, who put over 200 players in the NFL, but taught them how to be men along the way.

Yes, I hope Michael Vick turns his life around. After all, America loves a great comeback story.