It appears that many of today’s professional and even some college athletes have forgotten one important aspect of every game: sportsmanship. Many of today’s athletes apparently skipped the lessons on Sportsmanship 101.

For instance, during an ACC contest earlier this season, Virginia Tech forward Deron Washington proceeded to kick Duke’s Lee Melchionni in the face.

Sure Virginia Tech was down late in the game, but kicking a player in the face is unnecessary.

In my mind the only person allowed to kick people in the face is Chuck Norris, whose roundhouse kicks are always a force to be reckoned with.

Another Hokie who crossed the line was former Virginia Tech quarterback Marcus Vick. Vick apparently finds it appropriate to step on a Louisville defender’s knee whenever he gets tackled in the Gator Bowl. I’m not saying anything against Virginia Tech, but it just seems that sportsmanship takes a back seat to looking like a fool on national television.

And of course there was the Pistons-Pacers brawl that happened last season.

It was the first time in recent memory that an athlete had lunged after a fan in the stands until this season when New York Knicks forward Antonio Davis went into the stands to defend his wife who was being heckled by a fan.

Okay. Maybe Davis had a good reason to go into the stands, but the point was to show that even fans show poor sporting habits from time to time.

The award for the superb idiotic move of the year goes to Redskins safety Sean Taylor.

During a first round playoff game, Taylor spit in the face of Buccaneers running back Michael Pitman.

The worst part is that this happened a year after he was accused of spitting in the face of Bengals wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Obviously Taylor wasn’t satisfied with the fact that he wasn’t fined the first time.

Coaches have gotten in the act too.

Another prime example of poor sportsmanship happened last week during the LSU-Baylor women’s basketball game.

Although it is unclear what was said, LSU head coach Pokey Chapman and Baylor head coach Kim Mulkey-Robertson exchanged words following LSU’s victory. ESPN showed footage of Chapman literally pulling her hand away from Robertson, who was seen telling Chapman something in her ear.

If I had to guess, I’d say they weren’t inviting each other over for dinner.

Believe me, if I were to write about every incident that was “unsportsmanlike,” then I’d have another six pages of editorial.

I believe that any athlete who displays unprofessional behavior must take a special class on sportsmanship. I’d make them sit in a circle and state their name and reason for being there. They can hire guest speakers such as Mike Tyson and King Kong to speak on anger management.

The bottom line is that what was once a figment of the imagination has now become a frightening reality, as the term “unsportsmanlike conduct” seems to unfold before our very eyes.