This is based on a conversation I had with a former officiating partner. But why are sports so important to us as a culture? I think that the answer is obvious. It is first and foremost an extremely important way to teach some pretty important life lessons to kids. Of course, when the grown ups get involved and lose sight of that, it can really fuck things up. The important lessons are fairly obvious (you would think).
- Self Discipline
- Perserverance
- Working for a Goal
- Self Confidence
- The importance of others in your success (aka teamwork)
- Mentoring
- Respect for others even of different races, creeds and other group identies
- Sportsmanship.
- How to bounce back from disappointment
- Empathy for the losers when you are one of the winners
This is why it infuriates me when school boards threaten sports to push agendas and why people think of sports as just extra-curriculars. They really aren't Extra Curriculars. The lessons they teach and prepare young people for life with, are sometimes more important than Geometry or Trigonometry.
This is why what happened in the Weasel-Badger game last week was so egregious. And why the response from both the schools and the conference was so wrong. Sportsmanship is one of the most important values in sports. Without it, sports becomes tribal warfare. That element certainly exists. Its why the Shoe holds 100,000 people. But Sportsmanship is what keeps sports from degenerating into ugliness.
The NFHS published an editorial about sportsmanship in their magazine that addresses this issue. Its what triggered my conversation with one of the best referees I ever worked with. Its a good reminder.
The next time you want to get ugly at a game, think about this.
The Next time you want to get ugly in a game thread, think about this.
The next time you want to vilify a player, think about this
The next time you want to vilify a coach, think about this.
We are quickly killing the golden goose.
