Coaches consider ban on postgame handshakes

[Nevadaref]

The Greenville News (South Carolina)
February 26, 2010 Friday

HEADLINE: Coaches consider ban on postgame handshakes

BYLINE: Paul Alongi, Scott Keepfer and Ron Barnett
Staff writers

High school coaches and administrators across the Upstate are questioning whether they should continue the longstanding tradition of having players from opposing teams shake hands after games.

Greer High coach Jeff Neely and Principal Marion Waters began the soul-searching the day after a fight erupted on Southside High's basketball court as players shook hands in the wake of the Tigers' victory over previously undefeated Abbeville High.

"We want to be proactive on this stuff; we need to think about it," Neely said. "We don't want this to ever happen here."

Greenville County sheriff's investigators have opened a probe into Wednesday night's brawl to see if anyone should be charged with disturbing schools, which carries up to 90 days in jail for those convicted, Master Deputy Melissia McKinney said.

Students involved also could face suspension or expulsion from school. Players could be suspended from sports by the South Carolina High School League.

The fight couldn't have come at a worse time for Southside, whose 61-55 victory ended Abbeville's season. The Tigers are due to play Keenan for the Upper State title at the Bi-Lo Center at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

The Greenville County school district is taking statements and reviewing videos of the incident as well as gathering information from law enforcement officials "to determine exactly what took place and who was involved," district spokesman Oby Lyles said.

"We shouldn't be jumping to conclusions," he said. "We're going to hold those accountable who need to be held accountable. But people shouldn't look at an issue and take a broad-brushed approach."

Eight Abbeville High students were suspended as a result of their part in the incident, said James B. Tisdale, chairman of the Abbeville County school board.

"I don't know who started it, but I do know we expect our students to behave appropriately and not to engage in inappropriate behavior, especially not unsportsmanlike behavior," he said. "Win, lose or draw, you do your best and then leave it at that."

South Carolina High School League executive director Jerome Singleton said Thursday night he still was gathering facts and that no decision has been made on potential sanctions.

Of particular concern to Greenville school district officials is the number of people who came out of the stands and onto the basketball court during the melee, which Lyles said lasted 30-40 seconds.

Two school enforcement investigators with the Sheriff's Office are trying to establish who was primarily responsible for instigating the fight, McKinney said. They also want to know what happened and why, McKinney said.

"The difficulty with this is that there are so many people who were involved in this incident," she said.

The probe includes interviews with players, coaches and fans, McKinney said. Investigators also are trying to review video, including some from surveillance cameras.

Ripples from the fight could last into July if postgame handshakes come up at the annual coaches' clinic. However, some coaches weren't waiting to evaluate the tradition.

Neely said his initial reaction was to eliminate it.

"Maybe we ought to have pre-game handshakes," he said. "It's sad that we're thinking about doing away with it - it's sportsmanship - but if it prevents something bad from happening it would be worth it. Maybe it's a reflection on our society."

Some coaches said they have occasionally skipped the handshake after sensing tension during games but haven't gone so far as to ban the practice all season.

Doing away with the practice would bother Greenville High coach Dondi McGowan.

"Every opportunity you have with a child is a teaching moment," McGowan said. "Everybody loves sports and when you're playing emotions are high and the competitive juices are flowing. But there are more important things in life, and we try to teach kids to keep things in perspective."

Fran Campbell, whose teams at Wren High have participated in postgame handshakes for each of his 27 seasons, said he has played games against opponents from states where the practice had been banned. He would hate to see the same occur here.

"It gives the kids a chance to show sportsmanship, class and respect," Campbell said. "They're going to have to learn how to handle adversity, so I would hate to lose it personally. But I do think this is going to at least bring about some serious debate."

Bob Castello contributed to this report.