Real Team Attitude - Would You Want Him?

[Blue37]

I had not heard of Varsity Inc. until a post this week, but I caught the last ten minutes tonight. The Rebels lost their playoff game and a player (from the little I saw, it appeared he was one of the better players), rather than staying with the team for the post-game handshake and meeting, left his helmet and jersey on the field and walked off. A perfect example of what is wrong with many high school athletes today. Me, me, me. Forget about the team.

One of the coaches had made the comment that he would be playing college ball next year. If you were a college coach recruiting him, how much would his actions influence your decision to offer him a scholarship?

[BktBallRef]

He's behaved that way all season long. That won't stop somebody from signing him.

[dldsooner]

In today's world of college athletics, this kid is already signed and the coach's for this kid look the other way when someone this talented pulls a boneheaded stunt like this. Maybe at this level he is special enough to do something like this and get away with it, but at the next level he will be just another kid with a lot of talent who is amongst kids of the same caliber and it would not even be noticed.

[JasonTX]

This is an all too familiar story. Here in my hometown the star QB didn't shake hands, he just left the field. The coaches, his teammates, and even the fans were hollering at him to come back. Other than that he is a real good kid and it was a shock to everyone that this kid would do such a thing. He was just so upset in the loss that he let it control him. Needless to say, the AD suspended him from basketball (probably just a couple of games) and his dad had a good discussion with him as well.

[dldsooner]

Originally Posted by JasonTX

This is an all too familiar story. Here in my hometown the star QB didn't shake hands, he just left the field. The coaches, his teammates, and even the fans were hollering at him to come back. Other than that he is a real good kid and it was a shock to everyone that this kid would do such a thing. He was just so upset in the loss that he let it control him. Needless to say, the AD suspended him from basketball (probably just a couple of games) and his dad had a good discussion with him as well.

The AD shows a lot of class for doing that! I say good job to the AD for letting the kids know that sportsmanship does matter.

[Suudy]

Originally Posted by dldsooner

The AD shows a lot of class for doing that! I say good job to the AD for letting the kids know that sportsmanship does matter.

I'd like to second that. We have a couple of ADs in our group of schools we service that take sportsmanship seriously. He came by one of our meetings and handed out business cards with his phone number--including his home number--requesting updates on poor or excellent sportsmanship during the season directly from us. And one team had an _outstanding_ guy that we called his AD to acknowledge. The AD was grateful and the head coach really appreciated the positive feedback. I think, it is important to acknowledge the good along with reporting the bad.

[Ed Hickland]

Originally Posted by JasonTX

This is an all too familiar story. Here in my hometown the star QB didn't shake hands, he just left the field. The coaches, his teammates, and even the fans were hollering at him to come back. Other than that he is a real good kid and it was a shock to everyone that this kid would do such a thing. He was just so upset in the loss that he let it control him. Needless to say, the AD suspended him from basketball (probably just a couple of games) and his dad had a good discussion with him as well.

You mean the kid's father didn't get a lawyer to file an injunction!?