Rhett Butler told Scarlett O'Hara, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."

Throughout the past months, as it turns out, Rhett Bomar evidently told the University of Oklahoma football team the very same thing.
The now ex-OU quarterback, dismissed Tuesday for taking home substantially more pay than his actual work hours merited, obviously cared more about a few dead presidents than about winning or, much more importantly, personal integrity.

A quarterback is supposed to be a leader both on and off the field. Bomar not only put his future in jeopardy, but he also potentially killed his team's national title hopes. Just ask Marcus Vick what happens to can't-miss NFL prospects who screw things up.

So now we're left to sift through the wreckage of this most untimely incident, the latest blot on the college football world and a realm of life ostensibly devoted to academics and character formation first, and to athletics second.

USC, Auburn and even OU's rival Texas (with the departure of Ramonce Taylor) have recently felt the strain that comes with players succumbing to various forms of temptation, and other programs are still enmeshed in long-term difficulties for one reason or another.

The positive out of all this was how decisively OU head coach Bob Stoops acted. Stoops made a bold statement in favor of personal accountability. In a statement on the decision to dismiss Bomar from the Oklahoma football team, Stoops said that "I firmly believe that our program is stronger than any individual player and that a championship program cannot compromise its values." That's a welcome and cleansing statement which is so towering as a beacon of integrity that it exceeds the wrong done by Bomar.

A football team's chances of beating Texas and winning the Big 12 might have been compromised, but a decorated national championship coach displayed first-class values. Stoops has his priorities very much in order and he realized what was truly important in this situation ... for himself, for the health and reputation of his school, and for the character development of the young men still on the OU football team.

So how Bomar's dismissal will affect the Red River Rivalry and the Big 12 South? Simply put, the early verdict is that it hurts OU, but not as much as one might think.

To pretend this loss won't affect OU is to be naïve, but to think it destroys the Sooners is also a reach. Bomar was not a slam dunk to be a stud this year. Better than 2005? Yes. But not all-world. And the fact that this event occurs a full month before Opening Day gives Stoops and his staff a lot of time to develop the next starter, whoever it will be.

Ultimately, the OU-Texas battle will be decided by two teams, who will both be trotting out untested quarterbacks. In fact, the biggest single key in the Red River Rivalry ¡ª for this columnist's money ¡ª is if Texas will remain a psychologically transformed team after last year's beatdown of the Sooners and the national title that ultimately followed. If Texas retains its swagger, the 'Horns likely defeat OU. But if the loss of Vince Young turns out to be greater than anyone expected, chances are the loss of Rhett Bomar won't keep Bob Stoops from regaining dominance over and against Mack Brown.