Youth Sports...

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iAMaPhoenix
iAMaPhoenix Posts: 1,038 Member
in Chit-Chat
My son's football team has won their first playoff game, but that is just a small piece of the pie. They had fun and that is what youth sports should be about, period. Now, I will be the first to tell you that I like when they win as much as the next person, but the first question I ask my son after every game, win or lose, is did he have fun. Then I follow that up with when he stops having fun, let me know and we will find something else for him to do. I say this to bring up a situation at the field that occurred in the game before ours last night. There is an area of Orlando called Dr. Phillips where most of the "money" resides. Needless to say, they have the best football team money can buy. In fact, last season, the high school team had to forfeit all their wins because they were using an ineligible player. There was a guy in the stand last night filming the game using cameras that I personally know cost in excess of $12,000. I did not know he was a parent, and I approached him and asked him if he was going to be selling the copies of the game footage. He said he was from Dr. Phillips area and he was filming the game so they can prepare for the winning team. Now, let me tell you that this is a game involving 7-9 year old kids. I understand the need to prepare but why the overkill. Is the desire to win so great that you would stand in a driving rain to film a game where your child is not playing so you can scout them. I was amazed at this. BTW, Dr. Phillips has beaten both of these teams in the regular season by a combined score of 79-0. I guess the coaches there are afraid that the kids will have too much fun and not concentrate on football...

Feel free to comment...agree, disagree, whatever...but I am telling you that if you start going south with this, I will send you a PM since I cannot cuss you out on the boards while I am on probation. Just had to put my disclaimer out there, Steven.

Replies

  • Caseyanna
    Caseyanna Posts: 53
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    First, congrats on the playoff win! My son's 10 & 11 year old team has their first playoff game this Saturday that they are SUPER excited about.

    Secondly, I'm unsure of your league rules, but ours go by what they call the "gardner rule" in case there is a 3-way tie. Meaning, the team with the most points, gets the higher seed in the playoffs. That's how our team got 2nd. We've beaten a few teams 40-something to 0. But that's what got us our spot in playoffs. So I get it, plus, it's not fair to the other "good" team to hold them back from scoring.
  • Caseyanna
    Caseyanna Posts: 53
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    Oh also, about scouting. The one time our team did lose to a not-so-good team was due to this team scouting ours the week before and knowing our exact plays and when we were going to use them. I think scouting is good coaching. I totally understand where you're coming from. It's youth sports, but you have to remember, they are MEN, little ones, but still men. They love competition.
  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
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    My oldest is 15 and has been playing baseball since he was four. It's been mostly positive but there are some crazy people out there. His team (non-school) recently played a team who would step on our kids' hands when they slid into base. They wear metal cleats at this age. I cannot fathom my son ever agreeing to do such a thing and if I caught wind of it we'd be off that team so fast. It blows my mind that there are so many people OK with this sort of behavior. We have told B since day one that if he ever wants to stop that he should tell us. We have told him that yes, we'd be disappointed because we love seeing him play but that's OK because it is ALWAYS his choice.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    Below the high school level, I agree that it is ridiculous to be scouting out opponents. In the youth league to junior high age range, I think it's more important for kids to have fun and learn basic discipline, teamwork, and leadership skills than to be hit over the head repeatedly with the "win at all costs" mantra.

    I used to work for a company that helped "second tier" HS athletes get scholarships to play in college. Some of the kids we worked with ended up at BCS schools, but most were the type of kids whose parents knew nothing about the recruiting process and how to help their kids get noticed (i.e. highlight videos, game films, skills films, camps and combines, etc.). It is an extremely competitive process, and I think at the bigger high schools, it is becoming less about a team of kids having fun and learning important life lessons and more about promoting certain athletes to certain college recruiting coordinators. It is really starting to mirror the relationship between college and professional sports. You have a highly-recruited high school star choosing a college program solely because that program puts more players into the NFL, for instance. They give no consideration to whether the school is a good fit for them academically and socially, even the kids who aren't going to play a down of NFL football.

    Now, with youth sports being dominated by club and select teams, you see parents trying to get their kids onto the more prestigious teams, moving into certain school districts so their kids can play at a specific HS, spending tens of thousands of dollars on private lessons, travel, etc., all because it'll give their kid a better shot at getting into whatever college program they think is best. Rarely do the parents stop and ask the kids "Do you enjoy this?"
  • Scott613
    Scott613 Posts: 2,317 Member
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    In texas even the 6-7 year old flaggers get scouted. Doesnt matter if the team is rich or not. Tons of parents volunteer to scout for our team and our tough teams are rich and poor. If a team is full of athletes at that age theyll usually win regardless of coaching. Fast kids beat slow kids on the field everytime. We always are scouted and our team isnt even going to the playoffs. We change our offense every week. Our flaggers have run spread,I formation,double tight, trips, and everything else. Yes at that age they can pass and catch. The other teams can as well. It's competitive as hell and there is always going to be teams that play a little dirty. Thats just the way it is.
  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
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    Perhaps this is a football thing. I have never really noticed any heavy-duty scouting going on in baseball.
  • cabaray
    cabaray Posts: 971 Member
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    Last year in my daughter's 8 & Under softball league, we were playing a team. We were undefeated, so tensions were already high. Then, out of nowhere, one of the other team's dads ran out on the field and started cussing the ump up one side and down the other. They ended up having to call the police. Some people are just out of control when it comes to youth sports.
  • iAMaPhoenix
    iAMaPhoenix Posts: 1,038 Member
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    Great responses. Our commissioner is so adamant about fair play that he does not allow us to scout. We request film from our coming opponent and will trade off. If the other team "claim" not to have film, we still give them film. Our motto is to prepare our kids to be Champions on the field, in the classroom, and in life. Sports is just a small part of that. And disrespect of the officials is a sure way to get you kicked out of the stadium and banned from coming back for the year. All parents sign a sportsmanship form, and we have had to refund 2 parents their money for doing so. Kids need to know that behavior is unaccceptable.
  • macpatti
    macpatti Posts: 4,280 Member
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    Sounds like they're more interested in their own egos than the kids. In that case, they need to go find something else to do. Pathetic.
  • maidentl
    maidentl Posts: 3,203 Member
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    All parents sign a sportsmanship form, and we have had to refund 2 parents their money for doing so. Kids need to know that behavior is unaccceptable.

    I so wish more sports organizations did this. Some parents are really unbelievable. At a tournament last year, a grown man was taunting my son because he didn't believe his age and was absolutely certain that when their coach requested our birth certificates we be DQ'ed. My son is just big for his age and always has been. Some of these parents should have been taught how to behave a long time ago.
  • johnny_k
    johnny_k Posts: 150 Member
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    I umpire youth baseball, both league and select/travel, and I see this type of thing all the time. Unfortunately a lot of parents are trying to relive their youth through their children or have their children achieve the "glory" that they never did. I agree that individuals and teams should work hard and be competitive, but I also think it's gone overboard.
  • Caseyanna
    Caseyanna Posts: 53
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    In texas even the 6-7 year old flaggers get scouted. Doesnt matter if the team is rich or not. Tons of parents volunteer to scout for our team and our tough teams are rich and poor. If a team is full of athletes at that age theyll usually win regardless of coaching. Fast kids beat slow kids on the field everytime. We always are scouted and our team isnt even going to the playoffs. We change our offense every week. Our flaggers have run spread,I formation,double tight, trips, and everything else. Yes at that age they can pass and catch. The other teams can as well. It's competitive as hell and there is always going to be teams that play a little dirty. Thats just the way it is.

    LOVE IT! Same here. I'm near Pittsburgh, but it's not flag. Full equipment + tackle.
  • Froggy1976
    Froggy1976 Posts: 472
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    My son is playing tackle football right now. None of the leagues in our area are allowed to scout. If they find out it is happening the coaches are banned. Our league is fairly new (it's our second year) but we have had a lot of interest even without scouting for others. We are also struggling a bit in the standings because a good majority of the kids have never played before. I would much rather my sons team lose every game and learn how to play properly and with good sportsmanship. He is learning a lot and loving every minute of it. This is his fourth year playing as he was in a different league his first two years. This new league has been awesome! It should be all about the kids not the wins although winning is nice!
  • TheRoadDog
    TheRoadDog Posts: 11,788 Member
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    I asked my boss how her daughter was doing in soccer this year.

    Her reply: "The coach is much more interested in playing time than winning."

    I took that to be code for her daughter is having to share the field with the other kids.

    I love sports. If I am riding down the road and see a kid's game in progress, I am very likely to pull over and watch. It's a shame that there have to be adults involved though.
  • iAMaPhoenix
    iAMaPhoenix Posts: 1,038 Member
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    I asked my boss how her daughter was doing in soccer this year.

    Her reply: "The coach is much more interested in playing time than winning."

    I took that to be code for her daughter is having to share the field with the other kids.

    I love sports. If I am riding down the road and see a kid's game in progress, I am very likely to pull over and watch. It's a shame that there have to be adults involved though.

    Same here. Youth sport is the only place where the love of the game remains in most places. By the time they get to high school, it is all about selling your soul in order to get a D1 scholarship. My son is 10yo and on a good day he is 67 pounds. Most of the kids on his team are in the 90-100+ pound range. No D1, D2, D3, and if there is one D398 school is going to come knocking on my door in 6 years. I know kids who weigh less than my child by quite a bit, and I hear the dad talking about how he needs to start filming his game so he can get a scholarship to University of Miami...SMH.

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