There are a lot of rules in college football, but the simplest of them all is this: Respect the opposition.
But if you can't do that, this is a good substitute: Don't do something stupid on the field that potentially harms your team.
Jabari Lyons broke both of those rules as Florida battled Florida State with a chance to pull off a Top 5 upset.
Late in the second quarter, Lyons was ejected for spitting at an FSU offensive lineman, and ESPN caught it on tape.
Watch: Florida's Jabari Lyons spit at an Florida State lineman
There are so many awful elements of that moment. First and foremost, spitting at an opponent is the ultimate form of disrespect. It's a classless thing to do. There's no room in the game for it.
It's also straight up gross and unhygenic. In a post-COVID world, it's straight up unsafe.
And it's also incredibly dumb with a referee standing right there and rightly ready to throw a flag and call for an ejection. Lyons got himself thrown out of a rivalry game with his team battling for an upset victory.
Florida State was on their own side of the field and trailing 12-0 when Lyons committed his penalty. The flag moved the Seminoles to the 39-yard line and helped to spark a touchdown drive.
Lyons is a redshirt freshman. He's a young player but even peewee football players should know that spitting is crossing a line. The defensive lineman will have to hope his teammates can get the job done without him.
