BERRY COLLEGE DESERVES a lot of credit for making rather large accommodations to the needs of a nearly nesting pair of bald eagles in building a football field for its new and first-ever gridiron squad (first game next fall).

The college is apparently modifying where the stadium/field is placed, reducing its seating, planting 208 new hardwood/evergreen trees to create a larger noise/lighting buffer plus agreed to create a 10-acre conservation area near a body of water (the birds favor a fish diet) suitable for additional bald eagle nesting.

As most are aware, Berry has a huge campus in land area and might well eventually host any number of the “comeback kid” species that doubles as our national emblem. In fact, that the existing pair chose to make a home so close to the main portion of the campus with all its human activity is in itself rather remarkable.

Chances are that Berry’s new football team will be around for far longer than the current eagle husband/wife will feel the need to educate students about the value of a healthy environment. On the other hand, at least when considering the tethered falcons that may be symbolic of other football teams, there is a certain value in having the American bald eagles around to teach students a basic principle: Fly free or die off.