Growing up in pastoral Parkersburg, Iowa, high-school basketball was a hub of community interest. Our "Hoosiers" style gymnasium, which we called The Crackerbox, had a stage immediately under one basket and the main entry very near the other.

There were only two small areas of wall space that could be seen by everyone: the scoreboard hung on one side and a Grantland Rice poem filled the other.

"When the One Great Scorer comes around to write against your name,

"He writes not if you won or lost but how you played the game."

Rice, a 1901 Vanderbilt graduate and this country's first celebrated sportswriter, helped set a civil tone early in the 20th century and grass-roots America took heed. It was an era before professional ballplayers were wealthy and long before television and marketing wizards combined to make sports something they were not intended to be. It was an era when sportsmanship was expected, not an old-fashioned notion.

What would Rice think of the state of sportsmanship today? The sound you hear may be Granny turning over in his grave.

Evidence of decay abounds:

Lakers Win NBA Title: Looting and Rioting Follows

Little League Parents Brawl in Bleachers

NFL Fines Player for Excessive Showmanship

Skater Guilty of Mugging Olympic Rival

Coach Arrested as Fans Storm Field

You can fill in your own examples of anecdotal evidence. Nearly everyone, it seems, is out of control -- the players and their parents, the fans, the coaches and even the media who create heroes out of flamboyant, egotistical shooting stars who play the game for self-serving purposes. Isn't it about "me" anyway?

This isn't about who is holier than thou and who isn't. For my money, nearly all of us are occasionally on the wrong side of sportsmanship.

At Vanderbilt, much of our student body still chants derogatory -- if not worse -- clichés when opponents are introduced. Despite the urgings of men's basketball coach Kevin Stallings to the contrary, when you suggest to a "Memorial Maniac" (as some Vanderbilt fans are called) to be innovative, you'll get a very strange look in return. Doesn't everyone scream "you suck" during introductions?

Even some of our most faithful fans have forgotten that cheering for our team can be more productive than assuming that every official's call is tainted or that every opponent is a jerk. It's a fact that the vast majority of officials' calls are correct and most of our opponents are the kid down the street from someone.

How did we reach this embarrassing point?

There was a time when a player made a good play and actually acted as though it was not the first time they had ever done so. But somewhere along the line, theatrics combined with marketing and self-promotion. Dignity took a back seat.

Television must take a lion's share of the blame. It has made superstars out of average talent by bringing the game into our living rooms and placing its spotlight on the eccentric. Who wouldn't dye their hair pink or do a strange dance if it meant another million dollars on the next endorsement?

In its quest for ratings, each new sports talk show attempts to out-shock the last. I watched "The Best Damn Sports Show" once and learned it isn't.

I realize there are many nameless individuals who routinely exhibit good sportsmanship, but it would be good for my soul to be reminded of a few. I can think of but one popular American sport that still puts the highest priority on integrity and that is golf.

A true golfer (not the guys I play with) will call a penalty on himself/herself for violations that no one else could detect. You can bet that the loser of a sudden-death playoff decided by a lucky putt or chip-in will offer a hearty handshake and graciously say that the best golfer won.

Let's realize that sportsmanship starts with each of us and make a little New Year's resolution to keep ourselves a bit more under control.

That doesn't mean taking a vow of silence. Let's become known for our positive support for our teams, not for trashing opponents or game officials. Let's remember that our ticket allows us to watch from a given location and is not a license to storm the field of play like drunken fools at game's end.

I think Grantland Rice would be proud.

Rod Williamson is an associate director of athletics at Vanderbilt University.