If you can't beat 'em... quit

[Juulie Downs]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Mr. Wolff said the players were aware a defeat to Bassick would drop them to Division II — an assistant coach had told them — but that they didn’t play to lose. “That’s ridiculous,” he said. “The guys who were on the floor were trying their hardest. There is no way anyone can say we weren’t trying to win that game.”

After going most of the season with seven regulars, the Tigers played four seldom-used players and one who had not seen any varsity action against Bassick. That irregular substitution pattern caught the eye of several FCIAC coaches, ...

Classic example of the coach using faulty logic for his argument. No one accused the players of trying to lose. It was the coach's "irregular substitution pattern" that got them in trouble. And then he acts all innocent...

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by Juulie Downs

Classic example of the coach using faulty logic for his argument. No one accused the players of trying to lose.

My point exactly, Juulie. Yet the players were penalized even though none of them, regardless of their position on the team, did anything wrong. What a lesson to teach kids - your supervisor does something wrong - there's nothing you can do about it - you get punished.

[Camron Rust]

Originally Posted by Mark Padgett

My point exactly, Juulie. Yet the players were penalized even though none of them, regardless of their position on the team, did anything wrong. What a lesson to teach kids - your supervisor does something wrong - there's nothing you can do about it - you get punished.

And exacly how do you propose penalizing teams/schools who do have a reason to be penalized? They are a TEAM...including the coach. The coach breaks the rules, the team is penalized. They should blame him.

This is no different than a star player on the team getting suspended from some infraction (perhaps fighting) and not being able to participate in a playoff game....and the team loses. Those kids felt the effects of a consequence even though they did nothing wrong.

The nature of teams sports is that the team both wins and loses togther as well as suffers the consequences of the actions of members of the team (and staff).