Petition filed to ban Michael Vick from site of Jets training camp

Michael Vick will be a polarizing figure as long as he remains in the NFL.

The quarterback spent 19 months in prison after pleading guilty to a federal dogfighting conspiracy charge in 2007 but staged a successful comeback in the league, spending the last five seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles.

After signing with the New York Jets during the off-season, Vick now has a new group of fans to win over. A petition posted on Change.org shows it might not be easy.

More than 4,000 people have signed the document asking for State University of New York-Cortland President Erik J. Bitterbaum to ban Vick from campus, where the Jets have held training camp since 2009.

“I love SUNY Cortland, and cannot abide welcoming this sociopath onto our campus with open arms,” the petition states.

“We need to stand by what is right as a university by barring him from the grounds. I don’t want him anywhere near my beloved college or community. We MUST send the message that we won’t be party to the torture of animals by conveniently forgetting what he has done. If we welcome Vick onto our campus, we are complicit in his crimes.”

The person who created the petition decided to drive home his or her point by including an extremely disturbing photo of a mutilated dog next to a picture of Vick during his days with the Atlanta Falcons.

Maybe it’s working. In the time it took me to type the last three paragraphs, more than 100 additional people signed the petition.