Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Coaches Gone Wild
Parental pressure in youth sports is always a prevalent issue which seems to come up every few years. Often a parent will get out of control and do something which seems unfathomable to most people. The attention, however, does not swing nearly as often to the coach. Most parents do not see their child practicing due to busy home lives and work schedules. Most entrust their son’s and/or daughter’s coach to be a responsible and trustworthy person. Yet every so often there is an out of control coach who most people fail to realize is negatively impacting these very impressionable youth athletes (http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1895844/posts?page=151). The previous article not only shocked me, but flat out appalled me to think that someone, especially a grown adult, would treat an elementary school student in such a ridiculous way. I too had a coach who in my youth football days was seen as out-of-line and in need of a reality check. Often people would call for his resignation due to his aggressive and berating coaching style. I must say, the second of the two years I played for him was a much better experience than the first. It was almost a sort of initiation the first year to get on his good side. I regard him as one of my best coaches ever to this day. However, I have witnessed him get too worked up at times and let that affect his temper. Unfortunately, some of his assistants shared the same mentality, causing the whole atmosphere to be emotionally draining. As a youth, that should not be the situation. Youth sports should instead be a venue in which youngsters learn the sport and how it is to be played fundamentally. Obviously parents can get out of control. We all know and to some degree accept that. Yet every so often the parents should be checking in on how their child’s youth sports coaches are acting and treating their young, helpless athletes.
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3 comments:
I agree with your opinion that youth leagues should focus on the fundementals of sport. I know that competition can be healthy but it can also be crushing to a youth's spirit. For instance a kid misses the final out of a game and looses it for the team. The coach reacts by yelling out the player even though he is eight years old. Sometimes coaches get way to swept up in the games, instead they should be praising after all the things that matters in youth sports is whether you show up or not and having fun. Bottomline is hard-asses shoul stick to the upper levels of sports.
Taylor I completely agree with you on this issue. I too had a coach in youth football that would let his emotion get to him and he would start to yell. I feel that kids who played youth sports often have a coach like this. When there is a meeting with the parents and players the coach would say how it's all about the fundamentals and learning the game. Once the game comes it's the complete opposite. Coaches don't understand that yelling at them isn't going to motivate young players to try more and want to give it everything. Coaches at a youth program can make or break the kids ambition to play the next year. If the coach is understanding and teaches the kids all the fundamentals, kids would be more likely to play again. I really like how you brought that issure up Taylor. I feel that it is an issue that needs to be corrected. I went through it as a kid and you said you did as well. I hope that other kids don't have to go through it because it's not something they will want to go through.
Taylor I could not agree with you anymore. Coaches who get worked up on the field in front of elementary school players is just way out of line. These kids are what like ten to 13 years old and even younger. I do agree that a youth league like that should be strictly for learning how to play fundamentally. Then once you hit high school you'll know the basics and will become a better player. Although in a way I can see a tough coach being beneficial too. Let's think of it this way, if you grow up getting yelled at for doing something wrong you're less likely to do it again and you'll know how to react to someone screaming in your face. If you never get reprimanded then it might come as a shock to kids when they get older. Who knows what kind of an affect that could have on a kid.
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