The Sock 'Em, Bust 'Em Board Because that's our custom

The only surprise is that it took this long

Perhaps they aren’t playing the best brand of football this year, but the Big 12 must be fun to cover. Consider:

* Oklahoma State’s wild 48-45 victory against Texas Tech, followed by Mike Gundy’s meltdown
* Colorado’s stunner against Oklahoma
* The behavior problems at Texas — seven arrests, three subsequent suspensions; one NCAA suspension — and, perhaps not coincidentally, the sudden fall of the Longhorns
* Texas A&M’s awful loss at Miami and head coach Dennis Franchione’s admission he’s distributed a secret newsletter with insider information to special boosters … for $1,200 a season
* Nebraska — and it’s gracious defense — getting booed at home
* Eleventh-ranked Missouri’s amazing offense is ranked No. 24 in rushing, No. 5 in passing, No. 4 in total yards and No. 11 in scoring
* Kansas is 5-0 and ranked No. 20 Coach Marc Mangino is … well, I’m not sure what to say.

Given all of that, it’s not surprising Texas Tech got in on the act.

What started as a fundraiser for the Theta Chi fraternity has ended with the organization’s suspension from the university.

As a way to raise money for the fraternity, some of its members designed and sold a T-shirt depicting the likeness of Michael Vick hanging Texas A&M University’s mascot, Reveille, from a noose. 

The shirt says “Vick ’em” which is a play on the A&M line “Gig ’em, Aggies.” So, perhaps, this was just meant for laughs in the midst of a rivalry and not to inspire people to hang dogs. Actually, that seems pretty obvious.

Regardless, it seems a little severe to suspend the entire fraternity. Seriously, that’s sort of like defending Vick. You realize that, right? Who’s the bad guy here? A fraternity trying to raise money to benefit a Student Animal Legal Defense fund or a guy who admittedly murdered dogs?

“I came up with the idea and I drew it,” said Scott Klingle, a member of Theta Chi and a senior visual studies major from Victoria.

Despite the negative press the T-shirt has received, Klingle said, “I’m an artist, that’s what I live for. I want my work to be noticed.”

Klingle said he is not worried about repercussions.

“There’s no reason for me to get in trouble,” he said. “It’s freedom of speech.”