Difficult Times Ahead?

How do we plug the drain?

 

I am not referencing plumbing or politics. Instead, I am referring to two key areas, both of which cannot live without the other: middle/high school sports and officials. Both appear to be suffering, and I fear that unless the problems are soon rectified, interscholastic athletics as we know them today will be drastically altered in the near future. Trust me, I am not enjoying my commentary on these matters because I hold school competition quite dear to my heart. After spending pretty much a lifetime being involved as either a player, coach, or a referee, I find it quite difficult to turn my back and take a nonchalant attitude toward what I see brewing. Here is the two-pronged dilemma:

 

#1: Decreasing Youth Participation and #2 Decreasing numbers of officials.

 

#1: I am increasingly concerned as I view basketball box scores and talk with coaches about numbers of students unwilling to continue their participation in competitive school athletics. What began alarming me a few years ago was when I noticed that various schools could no longer field girls' junior varsity teams. This past fall I was further incensed when one local school district was not certain if it would have enough kids to even present a boys' varsity team; fortunately, a team was gathered and is competing this winter. Like many, though, my question is Why? How can an area like our Valley, one that is rich in basketball tradition and success, be faced with this lack of interest? Allow me to theorize possible causes:

     A. The standard line, of course, is that kids are different today, not willing to accept a commitment and live by it. Definitely, that plays a role but certainly is not the only reason. Kids dedicate themselves to so many different activities, so the commitment argument has merit, but much more contributes to this issue.

     B.  Travel teams and youth organized sports definitely play roles. For whatever reason, the brainwashing that kids must participate on organized teams as young as possible has been allowed to grow . . .and fester. While I suppose if I were a parent of a kid whom I envisioned was going to be a star, I would probably want him/her to continue to improve. However, the racket of travel teams has typically evolved into a cash cow for the organizers, regardless of the sport. In fact, this weekend over 4000 youths participated in Canton, Ohio, for the World Youth Football Championships . . .chi ching . . .I hear the cash registers from here! However, recognize that the kids who dominate most travel teams are the ones whose parents can afford it, with occasional exceptions. The downside, of course, is if kids are in organized, coached sports at a young age, the risk increases that the kids simply tire of sports, coaches, and competition as they often realize that their skill levels frequently equate to "average" as they grow. Additionally, kids who simply had not physically developed at young ages face an almost hidden rejection, thus losing interest. Again, this is not the whole issue, but it has to be part of it.

     C.  Parental pressure on both kids and coaches can destroy kids' enthusiasm for school sports. If parents continue to  criticize kids' performances and coaches' perceived slights, most kids will not want to subject themselves to that personal embarrassment. Parents may rationalize it by claiming that they are merely trying to encourage their kids, but I seriously doubt if most kids see it the same way.

     D.  Coaches' increasing demands in multiple sports put kids in awkward situations; for example, if the coach in one sport demands increased off-season time while another coach is doing the same, kids frequently say their lives will be easier if not trying to balance those two or three sports. Believe me, I understand why coaches do that--to be successful in an environment where the competition is getting better requires other coaches to do the same. However, every now and then kids will say they are quitting one sport to focus on another. Coupled with the number of "skills academies" that continuously surface, kids often envision glimpses of themselves as standout collegiate and even professional players--whether it is legit or not. Perhaps another part of the equation is that coaches themselves put pressure on kids and may not appreciate that they are even doing it.
     E.  Pay-to-Play is often cited as a major deterrent to kids' participation; I have trouble buying that school of thought in this era where we buy kids expensive cell phones, pay elevated prices for AAU, JO, and private instruction--seems like an excuse to me, yet it may also play a limited role in lack of numbers.

     F.  Losing is contagious, and, frequently, if kids have been exposed to much losing, a heightened awareness that sports = losing may begin to override the fun and benefits of being on a middle/high school team. If losing becomes the norm, it takes a special kid and a special coach to override that equation. To best understand, refer above to letter A--accepting that commitment may go against many kids' determination to overcome such an obstacle.

 

Here's the deal: several schools in our valley today are struggling to get kids to remain involved. What must be attacked is the reason why. In solving any problem, of course, we seldom look in the mirror. Perhaps piecing together a puzzle of the causes may help lead to a solution. While this may have already happened (I hope so), perhaps affected schools could begin a collaboration with parents to seek input on what can be done to alleviate the problem. If not, I fear that schools will be dropping various sports in the near future . . . so get ready for the screams to begin then!

 

#2: The average age of officials in all sports in Ohio athletics today is 52, an alarming number. Typical officiating classes for incoming officials in our area have fewer than 5 participants, and that is in a good year. Bottom line is that individuals do not want to officiate. Reasons why are certainly varied, but I am convinced that most adults find it easier to be critical of officials than to make themselves get involved in the game. Running the risk of "back in the day" stories, I make my point. When I was in college, I took a coaching basketball class as a freshman; included in that curriculum was a presentation by an official who laid out the process for becoming a referee. I was interested in it, pursued it, and soon became a rookie official. Arriving at that destination was not easy, however, because I had to study the rule book "inside and out," learn the rules, and master--as much as possible--the details associated with officiating. Simply stated, it was not an easy task, but what I truly learned was how much about the game that I did not know or had not even considered. It was a humbling experience, believe me, but as the years went by, I found my confidence increasing, my understanding growing, and my enjoyment surpassing any expectations I had. In short, I loved it--the camaraderie with fellow officials, coaches, and players only re-enforced that I wanted to be involved with kids and sports for my career. Also, the money was not over-the-top, but I rarely felt I was underpaid; for me, the benefits far outweighed the negatives.

 

My point in telling my story is that I was not afraid to accept a new challenge, even one that put me in the firing line of coaches and fans. The truth is those experiences helped me when I did become a coach . . .no regrets. Using my experience as my litmus test, I struggle with why young people--specifically former athletes--will not accept the challenge of contributing to the preservation of youth sports. Maybe it is because they are reluctant to endure the antics of fans and coaches, maybe it is because they feel it is an infringement on their time, maybe they do not think the money is worth their time, or maybe they just feel they are above it. Regardless of the reasoning, middle/high school sports are at a critical juncture: if new officials do not emerge and "pay their dues," we should not be alarmed when games are cancelled due to no officials being available or only one official does the game because no one else is available. While the problem is growing, I am convinced most fans either disregard it or are not even aware of its severity. My appeal is to those former high school athletes who still have an interest in sports: you need money, you like competition, you want to stay in shape, you want a challenge--Get Involved! Without your taking the plunge, the future is looking quite murky.

 

High school sports are a key lifeline of a community--we cannot take them for granted. Periodically, I hear people talking about how so many others just don't care about a variety of issues, such as reading a newspaper or taking the initiative to vote; perhaps, though, if our beloved sports begin getting impacted, our attention may be slapped, and we may appreciate the beauty of middle/high school athletics!