Marijuana Laws May Be Costing Colorado Teens College Scholarships

As one student athlete recently found out, Colorado's marijuana laws may be costing some of the [...]

By Stephen Andrew

As one student athlete recently found out, Colorado's marijuana laws may be costing some of the states teens college scholarships.

In a message that went viral, Texas Wesleyan baseball coach Mike Jeffcoat thanked a prospective player for his interest, but added, "Unfortunately, we are not recruiting players from the state of Colorado."

"In the past, players have had trouble passing our drug test. We have made a decision to not take a chance on Student-athletes from your state. You can thank your liberal politicians. Best of Luck wherever you decide to play," Jeffcoat continued.

Shortly after the email went viral, Texas Wesleyan issued a statement saying, "We are aware of the email sent by our baseball coach, and the comments he made are in no way a reflection of Texas Wesleyan University, its values or its recruiting practices. This is a personnel matter and it is currently under investigation."

"It is our University policy to not discuss personnel matters, but we want to reiterate that this email does not reflect our values and we do not condone discrimination. This includes discrimination on the basis of race, color, origin, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, disability or sexuality; or the political legislation of one's home state. We are committed to providing an inclusive campus for all of our students, faculty, staff, visitors, potential students and their families," the statement went on to read.

Later, they held a press conference where they announced that "Mike Jeffcoat is no longer an employee" of the university.

"The comments by him are in no way a reflection of Texas Wesleyan University or its values. We do not tolerate discrimination. Texas Wesleyan values our students, values our student athletes, and values our diverse and inclusive campus," the press conference statement continued.

"Additionally, an NAIA rule violation has recently come to our attention. Because this an ongoing investigation, we cannot disclose the details of the violation that took place under Jeffcoat's watch. We can tell you that we self-reported this violation to the NAIA today, and the violations have to do with player eligibility," the press conference statement added.

"We are proud of our historically diverse campus, and the students, faculty, staff and alumni that thrive here. We have a history of athletic excellence that will not change," the statement from the university finally concluded.

While there is no indication that this is happening at other colleges, it is a notable situation considering marijuana is legal for recreational use in Colorado, as well as Nevada, California, Oregon, Maine, Massachusetts, Alaska and Washington, but is still considered a criminal offense in most other states, even ones where it is legalized for medical use.

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