Teaching and Coaching

Today's blog was written by Maria Murphy.  Maria is a senior Political Science major and Education Schooling and Society minor at the University of Notre Dame and a student in the Social Foundations of Coaching course taught by Play Like a Champion Founder and Director Professor Clark Power and Program Director Kristin Sheehan.

In just over a month, I will graduate from Notre Dame. I will leave South Bend, my home of twenty-two years, and move to a place I have never even visited. I will trade the comfort and ease of life on this beautiful campus for adult responsibilities like cooking, cleaning, and paying bills. While I will continue to be a student, I will also take on the unfamiliar role of teacher. Come August, I will be teaching Social Studies, Language Arts, and Computers at a middle school in Corpus Christi, Texas, through the Alliance for Catholic Education’s Teaching Fellowship. I am also excited to take on other roles in the school community including mentor, role model, club moderator, tutor, and coach. While I expect that my life will never again be as carefree and easy as it is right now (except perhaps when I retire), I am excited for new adventures and responsibilities.

           

I have not yet learned how to be an effective teacher—that part will begin during my classes this summer. What I know, however, is that I am not just there to teach subject matter. My goals, above all, are to teach the kids in my classroom that they matter, to instill in them hope for their futures, and to promote, by example, faith and virtue.

This is remarkably similar to coaching. Coaches, hopefully, are not just there to teach kids how to play a specific sport. They should have higher goals—to instill certain values in their team that they will remember long after they have stopped playing the sport. Through sports, I learned (with help from my coaches) discipline, dedication to something larger than myself, and the importance of encouragement. These lessons have shaped me as a person and stay with me even though I have not competed in years. 

While reading through the Play Like a Champion Today Coach Manual, I am struck by how similar coaching and teaching truly are. The following are practical tips from the manual that I particularly enjoyed:

• “It is essential that you organize your thoughts and establish an idea of what you want to accomplish during your practice. Most importantly, write it down.”
• “Enthusiasm is contagious! … Creating a sense of excitement at every practice will increase your players’ interest, commitment, focus, and overall enjoyment.”
• “It is essential for you to be positive, to speak clearly and loudly, and to use an appropriate tone of voice. Monitor the length of instruction, as too much information can lead to inattention and overload.”
• “Your players should leave practice as excited and as enthusiastic as they came.”

These, seamlessly, apply to both coaching and teaching. I am excited to use the skills I learn for teaching as a coach, and vice versa. Because of the similarities, I think that my performance in both roles will improve greatly as I use the lessons I learn in one to help improve the other.

Overall, I cannot wait to get into the classroom and onto the field to work with these middle school kids. While I have a lot to learn about being a teacher and coach, I feel that I will have enough resources available through ACE and Play Like a Champion Today to be effective. The similarities between the two roles, as well as my experience on the receiving end as a student and athlete, also help me feel more comfortable with taking on these important roles.

           

Coaching will not only give me more time to spend with my students, but also another space with which to interact with them. The more relaxed, fun, playful nature of sport can help me strengthen my relationships with them while still working toward my ultimate goals—to teach the kids that they matter, to instill in them hope for their futures, and to promote, by example, faith and virtue. Simply, I want to leave both Corpus Christi and my school better places than when I found them. I think that coaching will play an instrumental role in achieving this. 

Coach Your Kids!

Steve Treacy is a sophomore Science-Business major at the University of Notre Dame.  Steve is a student in the Social Foundations of Coaching class taught by Play Like a Champion Founder and Director Clark Power and Program Director Kristin Sheehan, and is a photographer for the Notre Dame Athletic Department.  

As I went outside this morning, the sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and there was a cool breeze of air blowing across my face. My body was filled with joy and excitement, as this feeling brought me back to the days of playing baseball with my father as my coach.

From the age of four up to age of eighteen, I played baseball on my dad’s team in my town’s recreational league. Through those 14 seasons, my dad helped me evolve from a little kid who ran the wrong direction around the diamond after hitting the ball off the tee into an athlete who was hitting home runs and stealing bases. As I grew as a player, the relationship between my father and I grew stronger as we spent countless hours together out on the diamond. The stories of the memories that we created through baseball could fill the pages of a million blogs; however, there is one story in particular that I would like to share.

The author and his father at home plate.
Photo courtesy of the Treacy Family

In my junior year of high school, I decided that I wanted to try out for the high school varsity team. After playing in the recreational league for so long, I wanted to get the chance to prove that I belonged on the same field as the top players in my town as we competed against the top baseball players throughout the state. I trained all winter long--hitting in the cages daily, going to all the extra practices and workouts, and I even practiced staying in my catcher’s stance while I watched TV in order to continue improving my strength and my form. When tryouts came, I was in the best baseball shape of my life, and put everything I had into making the team. However, I was cut on the last day of tryouts, and told to “try again next year.” Needless to say, I was pretty bummed out. 

A few days later, I was in the cafeteria eating lunch with my buddies Ty and Jack, both of whom were on the varsity team. They were talking about their upcoming opening-day game. I told them that I wished that I could have been out there with them, playing for the varsity team. Jack looked back at me and replied that he was jealous of my position because I got to play baseball with my Dad as a coach. He said that his dad never had the time to coach a team, even when he was little. He had always wished that he could have gotten the chance to play with his dad.

I realized that what Jack said to me was 100% true. While maybe I had not gotten to play for varsity, getting cut meant that I got to play another season with my dad by my side. I realized how lucky I was to get a chance to go out there and spend hour after hour with the man who I look up to the most in this world. The next year, when my senior season rolled around and my dad asked if I was going to try out again, I responded “Why would I do that? That would mean 12 less games with you!” Looking back on it, being cut and getting the chance to keep playing with my dad was one of the greatest silver linings in my life.

In summation, this is my message to all parents reading this blog: Please, if you have the opportunity to coach your child, do not hesitate to take that opportunity. I know it sounds cheesy, but playing baseball with my dad was a part of my life that I will never forget, and I hope it will be the same for my future children. I would give anything to get the chance to go back and play another game with my dad coaching me from the dugout. By coaching your child, not only will you get a chance to share with them your love of the game, but it will also provide you and your child with fantastic lifelong memories, and will elevate the loving parent-child bond to a whole new level. 

For Love of the Game

Today's Blog was written by Ted Williams.  Ted is a senior Civil Engineering major at the University of Notre Dame and a student in the Social Foundations of Coaching course taught by Play Like a Champion Founder and Director Professor Clark Power and Program Director Kristin Sheehan.  Ted is also a Senior Football Equipment Manager for the Notre Dame Football Team.

I would like to highlight the issue of burning athletes out of the sports they love. This is often the result of the extremely competitive culture that can be found in all levels of sports. Today, young athletes are frequently required to attend early morning off-season workouts, adhere to strict diets, specialize in one sport, have a personal coach and travel, all around the significant distances to compete. These demands have become commonplace in the sports world, because failure to meet these demands will result in less playing time, which can decrease the desire for kids to continue playing.  All of these reasons and many more have taken the fun out of sports for young athletes. Without the “fun” aspect, sports become a burden and make young athletes feel like they are all work and no play.

I feel that coaches need to focus on developing their players and be concerned about the player’s overall enjoyment of the sport. This is critical of high school and youth sport coaches. I know this from personal experience, as I work as an equipment manager for the University of Notre Dame Football Team. This job allows me to see the attitudes and mindset of college athletes on a daily basis. Players sometimes complain that football has isn't fun any longer, and they wish they could return to their high school playing days. However, I also see the techniques the coaching staff uses to combat this mindset. The coaches often schedule fun activities or events that help promote team chemistry and bonding. Some examples of this include golf outings, team dinners, and periods of practice where the players can listen to music and even dance. All of these efforts are attempts to lighten the mood in an otherwise intense atmosphere.

My advice to high school and youth coaches would be to devote time during each practice to a activity that has nothing to do with the sport the kids are playing. This will allow your players to get outside of the constant pressure of their sport. This will also be beneficial for your team because they will bond and form relationships as a result of these activities. My high school coach started every practice with a joke; the jokes usually weren't very good, but it was a fun way to start a tough workout. Anything a coach can do to make his or her players feel more at ease is heading in the right direction. The main point I would like to emphasize is that the amount of enjoyment a player has is far more important that wins and loses or anything else. Playing "for love of the game" is a right that every kids should have, and it's up to coaches and parents to ensure this happens.

The Impact of Fan Support

Today's blog post was written by Remy Lewis.  Remy is a Psychology Major at Purdue University North Central and is a former Division One Track and Field Athlete at Indiana State University.  He is currently an intern with Play Like a Champion.  He is also a Coach, Scout, and Trainer for Sports Prep NBA.

photo courtesy of gameday.com

Fan identification has been a major factor in sports competition throughout history. True fans wearing team colors all season, less-devoted fans only wearing colors after a win, never wearing colors after a loss, and even fair-weather fans switching teams just to be a part of a winning culture. Indeed being a fan can be a roller coaster of emotions during sporting events. But what about the athletes? How does fan support affect them? The roar of a loyal crowd can boost adrenaline levels for the home team and be overwhelming for the opposing players. They say keeping fans involved and giving them something to cheer for will always have an affect on winning or losing the game. However, sometimes it is not always about the win or the loss. Maybe sometimes it is about knowing that someone supports you whether you win or lose.

photo courtesy of cbsnews.com

Much of this was the case for the Gainesville Tornadoes in Texas. The Tornadoes are a basketball team for the Gainesville juvenile correctional facility which allows those with outstanding behavior to play for the team. They mostly play against the local private schools and have had success as a team. However, their fan base has struggled. Regular citizens do not see a need to support kids who they believe brought this upon themselves, and most of the parents are too ashamed or simply too busy to go and cheer for their kids on a regular basis, and of course, their fellow students can't attend. Many of their games are played with not a single fan in their corner cheering them to victory.

photo courtesy of usports.org

All of this changed going into their game against Vangaurd College Prep which stated they would refuse to play them at one point. Not because the competition was not there, but because they felt it was unfair for a group of kids to have to play against a school with a ton of fan support. So the players came up with an ingenious plan. First they informed the student body and parents that the Tornadoes had no fan base and wanted to give them supporters for the game. Then they had a random drawing to have half of the student body and their families dress in Tornado colors and sit behind their bench to cheer for them. They made signs, had cheerleaders, and as the game went on, the crowd assigned to the Tornadoes no longer felt like they were cheering out of the kindness in their hearts, but because the genuinely became fans and wanted to support their team.

In the end, this became a heartfelt moment that no one who was able to attend will ever forget. More importantly, the juveniles who parents never make it to their games, finally feel that they fit in socially and appreciate the fans and opposing team for still treating them like athletes and people. It is nice to see young athletes using their influence on their peers to act selflessly in the name of fun and sports.

  

Fun is the Name of the Game

Today's blog post was written by Jewell Loyd.  Jewell is a junior majoring in Film, Television, and Theater at the University of Notre Dame.  She is also a student in the Social Foundations of Coaching course taught by Play Like a Champion Today founder Professor Clark Power and Program Director Kristin Sheehan.  Jewell is also a guard on the ACC Champion Notre Dame Women's Basketball Team.

Fun is the Name of the Game

photo courtesy of 247sports

What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word 'kids'? For me it is the word "fun." Have you ever asked a kid why they do something? This could be as simple as why they are writing on the wall, jumping in puddles, or playing in the mud? My guess is that the response would be something along the lines of "because it's fun."  Having fun is a key part of life. It can be overlooked, but in sports that is what drives and motivates people to play hard.

  

Growing up, I stayed at parks playing with my friends. Enjoying every basketball game, every game of tag, water fights--anything that kept us moving. My friends and I shared so many laughs and great memories at these parks. Little did I know that every time I went to the park, I was improving my skills. I was getting better everyday. I did whatever I could to go to the park because it was the highlight of my day. Having fun with my friends and playing sports was the best of both worlds. 

photo courtesy of indystar.com

I began to play tennis and I become really good at it.  However, I was also playing in tournaments every weekend, driving to unknown places, getting up early and not getting home till late. That's a lot to ask of a nine year old kid. Don't get me started on practice. Waking up at the crack of dawn, doing the same drills over and over every single day. I never got a chance to go to the park anymore, I never had time to hang out with my friends and have fun anymore. I was always busy. 

I remember one day, I was supposed to be at a baseball game with my friends, but I had tennis practice. I could hear and see my friends through the fence. I saw laughing and smiles and everyone having a great time. Then there was me, locked in the fenced in court-- no smiles, no laughter.  That's when I made my decision. I quit. I told my parents that I didn't want to play tennis anymore. I wanted to have fun and enjoy what I was doing. Playing tennis had become work; it was not fun for me anymore. When I was on the basketball court with my friends I fell in love with the game. It was fun. I worked hard at it because I enjoyed everything that came with it. When kids aren't having fun, that's a problem. The sport has to be fun and enjoyable for them to succeed. Once it turns into a job, the passion is gone and there is nothing to drive them. When you're having fun, all the rewards and everything that comes from hard work will follow.

photo courtesy of espn.go.com

Goal-Tending for the WIN!!!!

Today's blog post was written by Remy Lewis.  Remy is a Psychology Major at Purdue University North Central and is a former Division One Track and Field Athlete at Indiana State University.  He is currently an intern with Play Like a Champion.  He is also a Coach, Scout, and Trainer for Sports Prep NBA.

In sports today, it feels like we have rules and regulations for just about every situation you can think of. Sometimes we do not always agree with these rules, Often, due to a difference of opinion on  interpretation. For example, in most contact sports, a foul occurs as a result of illegal contact with an opponent and/or a form of physical "unsportsmanlike" conduct  A foul always results in some form of a penalty. However, what constitutes a foul can seem to vary according to each officials. In basketball, some violations occur with a small amount of contact, others only with major forms of contact. Determining what is and is not illegal contact is all up to the officiating crew.

A game, and more specifically a call, on Thursday, March 19th 2015, recent sparked a very controversial discussion.  Towards the end a first round game of the NCAA tournament, an official called "goal-tending" during the SMU vs. UCLA basketball game. With little time left on the clock, UCLA attempted a 3 point shot.  The ball never got to the basket since an SMU player touched the ball as it was on its way down towards the rim.  Touching the ball on its downward trajectory is generally called goal-tending.  UCLA was rewarded the 3 points and then won the game by 1 point, advancing to the next round. Yanick Moreira, the SMU player called for goal-tending, stated that he thought it was an air ball and was going to grab the missed shot. The main controversy has come from two issues:

1. A goal tend is not a review-able play according to NCAA rules.
2. Did the call meet every requirement in order for it to be deemed a goal tend?

In the past, most believed the rules to be that if the ball was on its way down towards the rim, and in or near the vertical cylinder, then the ball should not be touched. After the game had ended, NCAA members expanded on the true definition of the rule stating, "Goal tending occurs when a defensive player touches the ball during a field goal try and each of the following conditions are met.

1. The ball is on its downward flight
2.  The ball is above the level of the rim and has the possibility, while in flight, of entering the basket and is not on the cylinder." 

What has made it a controversy now is the statement  "has a chance of entering the basket", which most have been saying that there is no way the shot would have gone in, while others who freeze the picture on the point of contact believe the shot did have a chance to go in.

Essentially, rules may need to change in the future over this call. In my opinion, it needs to become a play that can be reviewed during games, and the wording may also need to be modified in order to clarify any misconceptions over the rule and the call. In my opinion, it was a goal tend. Every picture I have seen looks that way. If you remove the players' hand, the ball will definitely touch the rim, and could either bounce off the rim and out or off the rim and in. At this point it falls under the rule that states "has a chance of entering the basket."

In the end, the beauty of the NCAA Tournament is the superior level of basketball that people across the country get involved in.  The NCAA Tournament is fun--fun for the players, fun for the coaches, and fun for the fans.  Fun is why kids play games, and I'm glad its still fun at such an elite level, even if there are occasionally controversial calls.

Keeping Fun in the Process

Today's blog post was written by Remy Lewis.  Remy is a Psychology Major at Purdue University North Central and is a former Division One Track and Field Athlete at Indiana State University.  He is currently an intern with Play Like a Champion.  He is also a Coach, Scout, and Trainer for Sports Prep NBA.

When most people are nervous, it is because they are focusing on the results: hitting the ball or striking out, making the shot or rimming out, getting the job or not, winning or losing.  When you focus on the results, there is a big chance that you will omit very important steps along the way.  Here at Play Like a Champion Today, I've been reminded of the importance of focusing on having fun along the way. As an athlete, I've worked for years on improving the things I can control (my running form, for example) and not letting the things I can't control (the whether) affect me.  

For example when a shortstop gets a batter out at first, he has has to 

1. See the ball off he bat.
2. Move in the direction of the ball.
3. Get to the ball.  
4. Get his glove to the ball.
5. Catch the ball.
6. Plant his feet.
7. Get the ball out of the glove.
8. Point his body towards first.
9. Throw the ball to the first baseman.

After this point, the result is out of the shortstop's hands.  The first baseman then has to:

1. Get to first base.
2. Place his foot on the bag.
3. Catch the ball.

While these 12 steps need to be completed for an out, I feel like we also should add "have fun" to the overall process. The out only happens if the above 12 steps, between two people, are completed before the batter's foot touches first base.  Based on the average speed of professional baseball players, these 12 steps need to take place in between 2.8 and 3.5 seconds. If players fail to complete one step in this process, then the desired result may not occur.  But if kids aren't having fun throughout the process, then kids also won't enjoy the game. Sometimes, coaches seem to focus more on detail-oriented drills than their players would like. However, this is because coaches know that if you learn the formula for success, then success will naturally follow. My father, Rick Lewis, one of the greatest coaches I know, has always told me that "The process is more important than the answer."  As a kid, I didn't understand this, but I've learned that that because the process gets the answer, the answer is the process.

After you have found the process that will get your desired results, commit to the process.  Practice that process until that process is the way you do what you do. Become the process or "commit to the script." Trust and believe in your hard work, preparation, and commitment.  You control the process you use.  Your process will control your performance and your performance will control your results. Don't allow your performance to be affected by focusing on the results or the negativity.  Above all, make sure that your process includes fun so that you are remembering to PLAY the GAME, and games are supposed to be fun.

The Transition From Player To Coach

Today's blog was written by Sarah Voigt.  Sarah is a senior English major at Notre Dame and a student in the Social Foundations of Coaching course taught by Play Like a Champion founder Professor Clark Power and Kristin Sheehan.  Sarah is also the goalie on the Notre Dame Women's Soccer Team.  

After 18 long, amazingly rewarding years as a soccer player, it finally became time for me to hang up my boots. It was not a decision to divorce myself from the sport that has shaped me as a person and provided me with the opportunity to play in one of the best D-1 programs in the nation, but rather, to change my role in it. When I was a little girl, I had the dream of playing college soccer, and through the my own hard work and the careful guidance of many different coaches, I was able to make that dream a reality. I’m done with my competitive playing career (even though I don’t think I will be able to resist the allure of pick-up games or summer leagues.) However, I cannot see myself not being involved with the sport, so the decision to begin coaching was an obvious one.

This decision is far from unique. I think it’s quite common for athletes, especially athletes who feel that the sport they played shaped who they are today, to want to give back to that community that fostered their growth and allowed their success. That was my motivation, and I am currently about two weeks into coaching my first youth team, U(nder)13 girls. Our season has yet to start, but I feel that I have learned so much already. I felt pretty prepared, having had 6-7 different coaches over the course of my playing career that brought different styles and emphases to the game. But going from playing for a coach to inspiring players to want to play for you was a huge gap. It is taking a lot of evaluation and re-evaluation. I’ve had drills that work for my girls, and I have also designed drills that fall flat and not work at all. I’m learning that patience is key.

The most applicable coaching advice I have received is this: when things get frustrating, just step back and remember with whom you are working. Losing sight of the fact that we are working with kids is something that I have seen coaches do often in my playing experience. For me, it’s a lot more difficult to get upset with athletes for not understanding or being able to execute something the way I want them to when I remember the long game of coaching. The short game, so to speak, is winning the next game, tournament, or even State Cup at the end of the season (which we obviously plan to do). But the long game is to develop good people. To my memory, my best coaches were equally (if not more) invested in my personal development and my skill development. I’m only about two weeks into this coaching thing, and already asking and answering this question each time I do anything with my girls: How is this making them into good people?

Youth Sports: Work vs. Play and the Impact of Club Sports

Today's blog was written by Allison Griffith, a sophomore at the University of Notre Dame.  Allison is an English and Pre-professional studies major and a student in the Social Foundations of Coaching course taught by Play Like a Champion Founder Professor Clark Power and Kristin Sheehan.  Allison is also the manager on the Notre Dame Women's Basketball Team.  

Johnny is an eleven-year-old boy who has grown up playing basketball, soccer, and football for his grade school. Johnny’s sport experience thus far equates to playing with his classmates, who are now some of his best buds. He has always been talented at all three sports and enjoys playing them all, but he has recently grown to be a definite stand out on the soccer field. Together with his teammates, Johnny has even led the Perry Panthers to a few championships.

Seeing that Johnny could be a special player, Johnny’s parents learn of Elite, a club soccer program an hour from their home, which works with the most talented soccer players in the area and exposes them to other competitive clubs across the state at weekend tournaments. Johnny makes the team, and thus begins Johnny’s transition from “school athlete” to “club athlete.” Elite holds two practices a week, in addition to speed and agility training on Fridays and foot skills on Mondays. Weekends are spent at tournaments across the state filled with back-to-back games, usually 4-6 per weekend. The huge time commitment forces Johnny to quit football and basketball, his other two sports.

Johnny’s situation is all too familiar in the world of youth sports, and demonstrates the conflict of work versus play, and how this is both amplified and complicated by the popular trend of quitting school-sponsored sports and joining AAU or Club teams. At increasingly younger ages, kids are being convinced to move from playing for their school teams to playing for elite clubs that consist of rigorous, demanding schedules for both the athlete and his or her family.

What are the implications of this transition? What will happen to Johnny as he leaves his school teams to compete for Elite? It is a common situation that young athletes, particularly at the 4^th or 5^th grade level, are forced to choose between multiple sports due to the demanding schedules of one club team. Johnny was forced to quit playing football and basketball, sports that he also loved. He plays soccer 6 days of the week, sometimes all 7, and his parents spend the majority of their evenings (and practically all of their weekends) shuttling him to practices, conditioning, and games. How does this end?

Well for a few of the young club athletes, and some would even argue many, they will end up becoming solid high school athletes and maybe even be offered college scholarships. Even at the youth level, there are exposure tournaments that college scouts attend. I would argue that an athlete is definitely able to have a great high school career or even receive a scholarship without having played a club sport, but there is definitely something to be said for the higher level of competition and level of play of youth club sports that may increase the chances.

However, realistically, most of these young club athletes will not even go on to have great high-school careers. In fact, many, having had five or more years of playing a club sport, begin to grow sick of it and even end up hating the sport. Many quit playing the sport entirely before they even begin their freshman year.

The point I am trying to make, however, is not that club sports should be eliminated entirely. Done correctly, as I believe my experience was, you could maintain a healthy relationship with a sport on a club team. And it is true that an athlete can be just as apt to quit a sport having only played on school-sponsored teams. Instead, I am interested in answering, what is the point of youth sports at the grade school/middle school level? What is the meaning of sports at this age?

I believe a large part of this answer comes in discussing the difference between work and play.

Kids need to play. Besides psychological/developmental benefits, some of the best childhood memories are formed around play. Play, as Giamatti describes it, is “leisure, that is so important…because it is a form of freedom and is about making free choices” (22).  It is a space that kids can create to assert their agency, not because they are told, but because they want to. In contrast, Giamatti describes work as such: “Work is partner to duty, and brother to obligation. Work is the burden we assume, not the one we choose” (19). For kids who eventually quit his or her sport after years of rigorous club seasons, did the sport become a “burden” he or she “assumed”?

At the youth level, I would argue that many AAU and club teams promote the idea of sports as work. Think how scheduled Johnny’s life has become: he wakes up, goes to school, goes to practice, sleeps. And repeat. Add in games, conditioning, early morning foot skills, and he barely has time for anything else. Physically, Johnny often feels burnt out, and the amount he is playing puts him at a larger risk for injury. His coach seems to be more focused on results then fostering life lessons and camaraderie. He begins to miss his school buddies and winning school championships.

On the flip side, though there are exceptions to every case, I think that school-sponsored teams do a better job at keeping the importance of play in youth sports. There is something special about being able to wear your school jersey. There is something special about playing in your own school gym, changing in your own school locker-room, seeing friends and classmates at your games. With coaching, I have found that in my own experience, my youth coaches tended to integrate our practices with fun drills and positive life lessons. While winning is important, it was more about creating memories with your best friends. School-sponsored teams at the youth level ideally keep the player’s relationship with the sport a healthy one by maintaining that you are a student-athlete, and school priorities come first. Thus, the sport becomes an outlet for physical escape and a privilege, not a duty or an obligation. 

And here is where I would like to thank my parents for encouraging me to play for my school all the way through. The memories I have playing in my school gym and goofing off with my teammates and classmates are unmatched. Although I did play AAU basketball and club soccer here and there, it was kept at a healthy amount that never once made me dislike my sport. I think this is a very large part of why I played 3 Varsity sports all 4 years of high school, whereas I found most of my club friends quitting early in their high-school years.

Why should parents want their children to play sports? Hopefully it is with the intention of allowing them to do something they love, to learn lessons of discipline and hard work, to foster strategies to overcome adversity, to create lifelong memories with friends, and then to ideally win a few games while they’re at it.

Parents of kids- take notice and make sure you are not over-scheduling your children. Make sure their relationship with sports, at the youth level, is a healthy one. One that promotes play, not work. Coaches of kids- winning is fun, but having fun is also fun. Mold your mindset around the idea that these kids are kids, and they are playing. While talent and X’s and O’s are important, it is not and should not be the emphasis at this level.  

I still remember the motto of my school’s soccer team growing up which we cheered before every game and wore on the back of our warm ups:

“Play hard. Have fun. Win.”

In that order.

Causes for Concern

Today's blog was guest-written by Pete Piscitello.  Pete is the Executive Director of the CYO of Johnson and Wyandotte Counties in Kansas.  They CYO-JWA is doing a new series on trouble spots in youth sports, and we hope you will find his comments interesting.  

Dear Sport Community,

As parents, we all have decisions to make when it comes to what activities our children are involved in. For the majority of Americans this includes a form of sport. The common belief is that youth sports are great for keeping kids active, encouraging social interaction and developing character. It's an easy sell since children love games and they love to run around, making youth sports an easy hit. There's also a sport for every season. Mom and Dad can keep the kids busy year round and enjoy watching their son or daughter play on the weekends. For decades it seems the cycle repeated itself: sign-up for local league, drop the kids off at practice once or twice each week, game on Saturday, rinse and repeat. The kids would reach high school and if they had the talent, continue to play. It was easy to discern we were doing right by our kids because there was not much harm in sports.

If this sounds like a story from the good old days, you should know the good old days weren't that long ago. That was my own experience in youth sports and I graduated high school in 2003.  The times have changed.

A brief history of youth sports in our country may help to provide some context when considering current issues. For  the first half of the twentieth century, youth sport was a realm dominated by lower class families and immigrants in large American cities. City tournaments were about as high profile as competition got outside of schools. Scholastic sports also gained popularity with elementary, middle and high school sports spreading. The YMCA began to offer organized programs, but suffered during the Great Depression. 

It was not until after World War II that middle and upper class families got more involved and things became competitive outside the schools. Perhaps the best known national competition, the Little League World Series was first held in 1947 (though ESPN was not around to provide national coverage). Other sports soon followed. By the 1960’s families engaged in “pay to play”, which marks the beginning of the modern era of youth sports. This mirrors the path of our own CYO, which began in earnest in 1946 under the guidance of Tom Dorney as the first full-time director of CYO. It's interesting that our local CYO was going against the grain at that time by focusing on sports that based in the schools. Many elementary school leagues closed down when confronted by “pay to play” competition and fears over the safety of sports. Regardless, by the early 1970’s our program took off and it began to resemble what you see today.

For much of the period we’re calling the modern era, youth sports were played pretty much as described above. Families began to see more and more options for their children (particularly for girls) but participation levels continued to rise and kids switched sports by the season. Leagues were usually confined to a single season, games were played within the community, and practices were limited during the week so that kids could focus on schoolwork.

As far back as the 1960’s there was a subset of the population who began to see sports as an avenue to gain admission and receive scholarships to college. That idea became more prominent during the 70’s and 80’s, but seemed to reach a different level in the 1990’s. That bred more competition among parents and children to find the best instruction or the best team to showcase talent for recruiters. Not coincidentally, it’s also during the last decade of the 20th century that the proliferation of what we now call “club” or “travel” sports began to take-off. According to The Atlantic article referenced earlier, “in 1995 the Amateur Athletic Union sponsored about 100 national championships for youth athletes; about a decade later that number had grown to over 250.” The AAU, as it is commonly known, may be the most popular long-standing example of this new frontier, but it wasn’t alone. After the explosion of youth soccer in America during the 1980’s, the club soccer model used for years in Europe and South America became more popular stateside. "Premier” teams became a common goal for ambitious youngsters. With all the elite athletes in a community on one team, those teams now had to travel to find competition. This spurred a dramatic growth in the business of weekend tournaments as a sort of local tourism industry. It seems the 1990’s brought to the forefront what we had known since the 60’s: people will pay a great deal to take part in sports. In our efforts to “get ahead”, adults had created a world where sports were no longer just a kids game. These games were big business and everyone wanted a piece.

All this brings us to our youth sports culture today. In the past decade, community based “recreation” leagues have taken a backseat to expensive club programs. School based sports are a thing of the past in many communities. For example, a standout soccer player between the ages of 15-18 is likely to never play for his or her high school team. A basketball player may play high school ball, but in most places they consider that inferior to their AAU program. That’s where the college coaches recruit anyway. But it does not just start in high school, because these things trickle down. Now the competition is fierce just to get on the high school team or their club counterpart. This has led some parents to start training their kids year-round in a specific sport as young as 3-5 years old. That child can’t tie her shoelaces, but we have already decided for her what activity she’s going to spend 40+ hours each week perfecting for the next decade…

This isn’t to suggest that today’s sports culture is all bad, far from it. For one, there are many more opportunities for participation today than there once was (even if those opportunities have a price tag). There are also some great coaches helping boys and girls grow up and build virtue, just like they always have. Yet the good stuff doesn’t need fixed, it’s the concerns that need addressed. That’s why we’re going to spend the next several weeks here on the website addressing the causes of concern in youth sports today. More importantly, we're also going to consider how we go about changing things for the better. We’ll discuss the growth of specialization, the excessive pressures placed on young athletes, the “professionalizing” of amateur athletics, rising costs and growing injury concerns. We hope to provide some possible solutions while stimulating discussion in our parishes, schools and homes. Throughout this series, be sure to get on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channels to share your own experiences and join the discussion.

We all want our kids to have the best childhood possible and we want them to have fun while participating in sports. The vast majority of parents are trying to do the right thing when they make decisions on youth sports. It’s just that making the right decision today is so hard. It should not be that way. Sports should be fun for the kids involved. It should also be fun for the families who get to watch children take part with a big smile on their faces. We hope you’ll join us over the next several weeks as we dive into the concerns, questions and  solutions to assuring a great environment in youth sports!